Phlebotomy Certification

I had started this blog to help people to learn about phlebotomy certification without much trouble. However as more and more people continue to land up on the home page of the blog, a number of people seem to get confused with all the posts scattered across dates. That is why I have grouped the posts into different headings and created this table of content. Hope it will help you get the information that you are looking for quickly.

Basics of phlebotomy certification

• What is phlebotomy certification
• How to get phlebotomy certification
• Phlebotomy Salary

Phlebotomy Certification Exam

• Tips to prepare for phlebotomy certification exam
• Get to know if you are ready for Phlebotomy Certification Exam

Phlebotomy Certification Online

• How to Get Your Phlebotomy Certification Online

Debunking Some popular myths about free phlebotomy training

This is one of the most frequently asked questions during any phlebotomy certification examination. Phlebotomy error forms a part of the pre-analytical laboratory error and can occur due to any of the following reasons

• Wrong Patient Identification
• Erroneous Phlebotomy Technique
• Faulty Collection Procedures

Wrong Patient Identification

This is one of those errors than can never be explained or excused. It does not occur because of any lack of skill rather it occurs because of a general lack of alertness. As we shall see, these errors can be avoided by simply using a checklist to verify facts before drawing blood. Some of the common reasons for such an error may include

• Ignoring the standard procedures for identifying the patient. It can be avoided by checking the identity document of the patient and by always asking him to spell his name aloud. Use of electronic cards that effectively bar code the patient can do wonders to avoid such issues.
• Use of unlabelled tube or wrongly labeled tubes for collection of bloods. Some hospitals try to make use of pre-labeled tubes to avoid the work at the time of collection of samples. However this is one of the most frequent sources of error. It is better to allow the nurse to print out the label and put it on the tube at the same time as collecting the sample.
• Ignoring some critical information like whether to collect the sample after food or before food will also result in wrong diagnosis.

Erroneous Phlebotomy Technique

This type of mistakes happen primarily due to lack of knowledge and hopefully you will learn to avoid them during your phlebotomy certification class. Some of the things to look out for are selection of right vein and avoiding areas that are prone to infection and/ or contamination of any kind. Another common mistake committed by phlebotomists is to forget cleaning the site of venipuncture properly.

Faulty Collection Procedures

The order of draw is one of the most important concepts that you will get to learn while preparing for your phlebotomy certification. Any mistake in the order of draw will result in a wrong diagnosis for your patient. You must never shake the tube strongly after collecting the blood. The methods for puncture and blood draw are taught for a reason. You will do well to remember them even after passing the phlebotomy certification exam.

It has been proved time and again that one’s aptitude for a job is a better determinant of one’s success in the job as compared to skill set. This is even more true for a job like that of a phlebotomist since a phlebotomist is expected to soothe the frayed nerves of the patients. More often than not the phlebotomist happens to be the only point of contact of a patient with the laboratory.

That is why before joining a phlebotomy certification course, it is important that you take some time out to understand the duties of a phlebotomist thoroughly. After that analyze yourself and see if you have what it will take to perform these duties day after day for may be the next 30 years or so. This is a much smarter approach to selecting a career than simply deciding one based on salary and/or duration of the certification process. To help you in the above process, we have provided a short description of most of the important duties of a phlebotomist viz

• Managing the patient
• Venipuncture and Blood sample collection
• Labeling of blood samples and sending them to laboratory

Managing the patient

In my personal opinion, this is the most important task that a phlebotomist has to perform. People do not come for phlebotomy out of willing. They are forced to undergo the procedure because the physician suspects some disease. That can be quite unnerving for a number of people. The long drawn procedures of hospitals may make them irritated as well. The way a phlebotomist handles the patient, determines the final impression of the entire hospital that he/ she carries with him/ her.

That task is made a lot more difficult by the different ways in which different people want to be treated. Some people want a professional treatment i.e the phlebotomist should simply draw the blood and let him go. Some other people on the other hand will like the phlebotomist to empathize with them and discuss their conditions with them. There is no need to give any expert opinion but some general assurance like “very few people who get tested for this procedure test positive” will go a long way.

Venipuncture and blood sample collection

Venipuncture and blood collection is the reason of existence of the phlebotomist. These are actually two steps of the process of blood collection. Venipuncture is the act of inserting the needle into the vein and then the collection is the act of drawing the blood and then storing it properly.

One way to excel in this duty is develop an intuition for finding the right vein to puncture without having to resort to multiple attempts. In all my years as a phlebotomist, this is one thing that always created a positive impression on the patient without fail.

Labeling of blood samples and sending them to laboratory

If there is one task in the world where 6 sigma accuracy is not good enough, then it has to be this one. Even if a single sample in a million gets wrongly labeled or gets contaminated before reaching the laboratory, then a life can be in danger. That is why a phlebotomist needs to be able to keep his calm even when dealing with a really irritating customer. Once the blood is properly labeled with the patient’s name and unique identification, then it is sent to the laboratory for further tests and final report.

The idea of the post is not to discourage anyone from taking up the job as a phlebotomist. However please remember that your personality is more important than technical details. So try to see if you are the type of person who is ready to perform the above duties day after day for the next 30 years or not.

Phlebotomy on its own refers to the process of drawing blood of a patient. The procedure may be required either as part of a diagnosis of a disease or because you want to donate blood. You may refer to it as a venipuncture procedure as well. The professionals who practice phlebotomy are known as phlebotomists.

Phlebotomy certification is a process in which a central organization vouches for the competency level of a phlebotomist. There are 10 different organizations in the US that issue certification in phlebotomy. Unlike other professions, a certification is not required by any law or regulation (other than in 2 states). However since phlebotomy is an extremely critical step in the proper diagnosis and treatment of most ailments, most of the healthcare organizations prefer applicants with a certification in phlebotomy.

Logically any employer would prefer to hire certified professionals for a job of such importance. However till very recently the number of people wanting to take up phlebotomy as a career was low and hence employers were sort of forced accept whoever they could find. There have been two recent trends that have made phlebotomy certification a must have one if you intend to serve as a phlebotomist.

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As some of you may be aware, I help people trying to get phlebotomy certification online. It is possible for people to schedule the dates of the certification examination on their own. One common question asked by many students is how do I know if I am ready for phlebotomy certification exam or not. We shall look at this particular aspect in today’s post.

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We have been repeating the advantages of getting a phlebotomy certification in all most all posts of this blog. It is absolutely possible that some of you may end up with the conclusion that you need not take anything else into consideration before going for a phlebotomy certification.

We continue to be confident that phlebotomy is a really good profession to take up especially because of the low initial expense and because of the relative safety provided by the job. However, many of you will have a particular lifestyle in mind or may be you have a mortgage to pay off. In such cases it will be prudent to consider the salary of a phlebotomist before making your final decission.

The salary of a phlebotomist depends upon two primary factors i.e the number of years of experience and the added skill that the person has. Please remember that the salary for phlebotomy professionals with same experience and same skill set varies across different cities as well.

Typically you shall start at a salary of $10 per hour after completing your phlebotomy certification. The salary can go up if you have some additional experience like that of nursing assistant. The salary will keep going up as you gain more experience as a phlebotomist. The big break through comes when you migrate from being an individual contributor to a supervisor.

Please consider this potential salary as one of the important variables while deciding whether to do a phlebotomy certification or not. At the same time do not lose track of other variables like job satisfaction and stability.

We have already looked at the basics of phlebotomy certification and some tips to clear the examination for the same. In yesterday’s post, I had talked about the nuances of phlebotomy certification courses. However till now we have mostly focused on ways to get phlebotomy certification in an offline world. It is very much possible and convenient to get the certification through online mediums as well.

Please remember that the job of a phlebotomist involves a lot more than simply drawing blood from the patients. Most of the people are scared, irritated or nervous while going to a phlebotomist as unfortunately we are the modern day fortune tellers who will let these guys know how sick they really are. Hence the job of a phlebotomist requires detailed knowledge of human anatomy and human psychology. That is why it makes sense to select the online school for phlebotomy certification quite carefully.

Advantages of Online Phlebotomy Certification

If you are wondering why on earth someone will ever join an online phlebotomy training, then probably you are not facing any of the problems that make offline phlebotomy classes impossible for many students.

• Attending a class everyday can be quite difficult for people who already have a part-time or full-time job or people with kids. The online classes help you study at an hour convenient to you.
• The online courses tend to be cheaper compared to similar offline courses and hence can be quite effective for people facing financial problem.
• Finally, if you are faster or slower than the average population then you will find the pace of a normal class to be too fast or too slow. None of these issues are present in case of an online class.

Tips to select an online school for phlebotomy certification

Please do yourself a favor and ignore everything other than verifiable fact present in the pitch of any potential school. Everyone claims to provide cutting edge training with lots of hands on training, student teacher interaction etc. Unfortunately not many of them really provide all these services. That is why we always advise students to shop around before choosing a Phlebotomy training school. By the time you have visited 10 schools, you will know exactly what parameters are important and how they rank on those parameters. Feel free to ask any question that is there on your mind. The phlebotomy certification is not a legal requirement in most of the states of United States but still try to select a school that has been recognized by national health departments.

Just because you are joining an online program, you should not assume that there will not be any constraint on the timing. Even online training classes need to have a fixed timing for clarifying any doubts that you may have and for the hands on practice sessions to provide you practical knowledge. Try to find out these timings and select a course whose timing can be easily accomodated in your schedule.

In order to get the phlebotomy certification, one needs to successfully pass the phlebotomy certification exam. Phlebotomy Certification courses are designed to help a person to pass this examination easily. The courses are offered through vocational schools, community colleges and some hospitals. The course duration varies between 4 months to 24 months depending upon how comprehensive the course is. Since the courses are designed to help people obtain phlebotomy certification, they tend to be similar in terms of course content except for few minor exceptions.

Make sure that the course covers all chapters necessary for the certification exam, before joining one. The course must offer both practical and theory classes as well.

Attractiveness of phlebotomy certification courses

The phlebotomy course allows one to get a more or less secure job easily and fast. Phlebotomists earn any where between 20,000 USD to 50,000 USD depending upon prior work experience and the exact nature of the course  availed.

The certification is a legal necessity only in 2  states of USA. However most employers tend to prefer people with prior work experience or people with formal phlebotomy certification. So if you have never worked as a phlebotomyst, then it makes a sense to go for one of the courses.

The attraction of phlebotomy as a profession does not lie in its earning potential alone. This is one of the few jobs where you can expect a certain amount of job security and respect. If you are looking for a certification that will enable you to get into a job as soon as possible then you will be happy to learn that phlebotomy certification is one of the fastest courses to complete.
The primary responsibility of a Phlebotomy professional is to draw blood and the process is also known as venipuncture.

People need phlebotomy either because they have been advised to get a blood test done or because they want to donate blood to someone. Having said that, the job of a phlebotomist is not merely to draw blood. Human empathy and a certain level of patience is as important as the technical knowledge and that is why a lot of people who get into the job as just another assignment get frustrated.

People who come to a phlebotomist show a wide range of emotions and those are rarely happy ones. Some people are uncomfortable or scared by the throught of having their blood drawn while some other are irritated or frustrated at having to go through a battery of tests. That is why it is really important that the phlebotomist understands what is going through the mind of the patient and shows maturity and empathy in treating them.

You should consider a profession as a phlebotomist only if you have the inclination to treat ill people. Getting a phlebotomy job after obtaining phlebotomy certification tends to be easy because every hospital, lab and clinic require the services of a phlebotomist.

You will be required to pass a phlebotomy certification exam before earning the certification. It is a good idea to join a phlebotomy training class to improve your chances of passing the examination. Do not worry about lack of time or money as it is possible to join an online phlebotomy training class or a free phlebotomy certification class.

Hope we have managed to answer all your doubts about phlebotomy. If anything is missing then please let us know so that we can answer them as well.

As discussed on this blog earlier as well, phlebotomy is the procedure of drawing blood from a patient or a donor. While phlebotomy certification is mandatory in only 2 states, most employers prefer applicants with a certification and hence we recommend that you try and obtain a certification to improve the chances of landing a job fast.

Before you can become a certified phlebotomist, you need to pass a phlebotomy certification exam. This examination will test your competence in both theoretical and practical aspects involved in the job of a phlebotomist. The number one reason why people join a phlebotomy training is to improve their chance of clearing this phlebotomy certification exam. However good phlebotomy training programs go a lot beyond this.

To be a good phlebotomist, it is not enough to have the required functional knowledge alone. You will be interacting with irritated old men, scared children and many more difficult people. That is why it is important for a phlebotomist to be good at interacting with people and that is one of the critical skills imparted in a phlebotomy certification training program.

One of the added advantages of joining a training program are the friends that you will make. They will prove helpful while job hunting and also while working in the hospital. While it is possible, atleast theoretically, to learn the theory part involved in phlebotomy certification, the phlebotomy schools make a real difference in teaching the practical aspects. Hands on experience of drawing blood will not only help you to clear your certification exam, it will help you to be a more efficient professional after joining a job as well.