Phlebotomists are considered valuable professionals in the medical field. Still, phlebotomists are not the first people that come to mind when we think about hospitals and medical care. Why is that?

First and foremost phlebotomy as a practice is relatively unknown outside medical field. They do provide a vital supporting role for nurses and doctors, but they are not fully qualified medical experts themselves. In many  cases, nurses perform the tasks that phlebotomists do- drawing blood and collecting samples, in order to send them to labs for testing. In larger hospitals and medical units the tasks between nurses and phlebotomists are separated, even though most nurses are required to have phlebotomy certifications as well.

Phlebotomy is a great way to find access to medical field- it does not require years of training like lot of other professions, but still offers the benefits of helping people.

In order to become certified phlebotomist, one needs to fo through training program, which lasts from 4-6 weeks to about 4 months. Most of the countries demand continuing education for certification.

The demand for specialists in phlebotomy field has been steadily on the rise past decade (especially in US) and currently there are hundreds of courses available to give you the access to this field.

Phlebotomy training consists of several different parts, and you will be given a good overview from physiology and anatomy as well as a course in blood sampling protocols, CPR and laboratory procedures to obtain the certification.

Once the training is completed you don’t have to work in a hospital. Many phlebotomists end up working in commercial laboratories, hospices or blood banks. There are lots of different opportunities in this field and PTJ is here to help you find the right options for you!