A medical laboratory technologist collects and analyzes a variety of biological and environmental samples, which helps the physician to make a diagnosis and to select a method of treatment.
The technology is divided into five major areas:
clinical biochemistry, which is the analysis of blood and body fluids;
clinical microbiology, which involves culturing and identifying bacteria and other micro-organisms from specimens to detect infection;
haematology, the study of blood, which includes performing blood counts and studying cell types;
immunohaematology, which involves typing blood for transfusion, and testing prenatal and postnatal screening for antibodies; and
histotechnology, which involves preparing tissue for microscopic examination.