Curriculum

Technical Development
The OSF Saint Francis School of Clinical Laboratory Services provides a structured program offering both clinical and classroom instruction. The clinical phase involves rotations through each laboratory section, where students learn manual techniques and operation of automated lab instruments, supervised by practicing medical technologists. Judging specimen acceptability, validating test results through quality control protocols, troubleshooting common instrument malfunctions and correlating abnormal test results with associated pathophysiology are an integral part of this learning process.

The classroom phase consists of formal lectures by a microbiologist, a biochemist, pathologists and medical technologists. In-depth theory of lab practice is presented, including pathophysiology and related disease states. Case study discussions and audio-visual materials supplement these courses.

Professional Development
A medical technologist needs more than just technical knowledge and skills. Students encounter a variety of situations which promote the development of professional attitudes, values and behavior. For example, the consulting and management rotations each provide students with activities that may include interacting with physicians about lab methods and data, attending inter-departmental meetings with nursing and other health care professionals, providing an in-service or competency validation of direct patient care staff performing bedside testing, and liaison with industry vendors in evaluating new laboratory methods.

Although the student's primary education occurs in the clinical laboratory, many alternate environments are explored throughout the year. These allow the student to view first-hand the myriad career possibilities a medical technologist enjoys.

Students may spend part of their blood bank course at the Peoria Red Cross blood donor center and laboratory.  Additional tours and presentations are scheduled during the year based on students' interests; past groups have heard from sales representatives and toured the research and electron microscopy labs at University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria, a local analytical (environmental) lab; and the Illinois Bureau of Forensic Science crime lab in Morton. Each class attends the annual spring meeting of the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science - Illinois, where students attend professional workshops, tour the exhibits of new instrumentation and compete in the academic Student Bowl with other laboratory science students.

Graduation
Affiliation allows undergraduate students who successfully complete the medical technology program at OSF Saint Francis to receive a baccalaureate degree from their college or university. The program is accepted for 32 or more semester hours of credit, depending on the policies of each affiliate school. All graduates of the OSF Saint Francis MT program receive a certificate of completion, and are eligible to take the national certification exams.

For additional information contact:

 (309) 624-9021