Enhancing Testing Practices in the Clinical Laboratory by Developing Specific Training Activities for Medical Technologists, Medical Laboratory Technicians, and Pathologists

On October 1, 2003, the American Society for Clinical Pathology began implementation of a three year cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to assess five areas of high public health priority.

The five areas of focus include:

• CLIA Regulations
• HIV Rapid Testing
• Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing
• Chemical Terrorism
• Genetic Testing

The goal of the cooperative agreement is to determine and assess the knowledge/education laboratorians have on these subjects, fill in the gaps with specific education interventions and then revaluate these laboratory professionals to ensure the retention of this information.