Nova Scotia College of Medical Laboratory Technologists

MLA Regulation Position Statement

NSCMLT has adoted the CSMLS position statement for Support of the Regulation of Medical Laboratory Assistants.

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CSMLS Position Statement

 

Support for Regulation: Medical Laboratory Assistants (MLAs)

The Canadian Society for Medical Laboratory Science (CSMLS) endorses the regulation of medical laboratory assistants (MLAs) in all jurisdictions across Canada. Regulation defines the practice of medical laboratory science, establishes the requirements and qualifications necessary to practice in the medical laboratory profession, and describes the boundaries within which the profession operates, as a key element of patient safety.

The CSMLS supports employing MLAs in the medical workplace providing that the MLA:

  • has relevant education and/or experience, and

  • is certified with the Canadian Society for Medical Laboratory Science, and

  • is performing within his or her scope of practice and/or level of professional certification, and

  • adheres to the CSMLS Code of Professional Conduct, and

  • is accountable for his or her professional acts.

Implicit

in these responsibilities is the need to maintain knowledge and skills at the appropriate level.

The purpose of professional regulation is to serve and protect the public. Regulation ensures that competent, qualified, registered medical laboratory assistants provide Canadians with safe and ethical laboratory testing.

Note: The CSMLS acknowledges the diversity of job titles for MLAs in Canada, and has selected this term as it relates to the National Competency Profile. Reference to the title MLA includes, but is not limited to: medical laboratory assistant, clinical laboratory assistant, medical laboratory technician, MLA/T (medical laboratory assistant/technician), medical laboratory aide, laboratory helper and phlebotomist.

References:

  1. Ernst EJ. Applied Phlebotomy. Baltimore: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins: 2005.

  2. World Health Organization. WHO guidelines on drawing blood: best practices in phlebotomy.

Geneva, Switzerland : WHO Press; 2010. 125 p.

Approved April 2012 Revised March 2013  

 

CSMLS granted permission December 2014  

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Land Acknowledgement - NSCMLT would like to begin by respectfully acknowleding that the province of Nova Scotia is the ancestral homelands of many diverse populations and acknowledge that we are on the traditional lands, referred to as Mi'kma'ki the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi'kmaq People who are the founding people of Nova Scotia under the "Treaties of Peace and Friendship". We respect the Peace and Friendship treaties, we acknowledge the harms and mistakes of the past, and we dedicate ourselves to move forward in partnership with Indigenous communities in a spirit of reconciliation and collaboration.  

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380 Bedford Highway, Suite 202
Halifax, Nova Scotia B3M 2L4

Phone 902-789-6465

Email info@nscmlt.org

 

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