ASCP Wage and Vacancy Survey of US Medical Laboratories

Laboratory medicine is a rapidly evolving field. Advances in genomics and automated technology are redefining the workforce skills necessary to meet the demand of tomorrow's laboratory. In addition to these changes, the nation's clinical laboratories continue to be plagued by challenges to recruitment and retention of staff. Increased competition for qualified staff was reported as the chief hiring challenge for 63% of clinical laboratories. Other top issues affecting recruitment were lower compensation for laboratory work compared with other fields (33%), applicants unwilling to relocate (28%), applicants not having the necessary skills or education to perform the work (26%), and less desirable working conditions compared with other careers (17%). Demand for all laboratory professionals far outstrips supply. As laboratories struggle to fill positions, their challenges are compounded by a dwindling pipeline of new professionals. Unfamiliarity with the profession due to its lack of public visibility and limited opportunities for advancement are also contributing factors. In addition, the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 may have inadvertently played a part in today's laboratory personnel shortage by relaxing the educational requirements for those permitted to perform laboratory tests, allowing some laboratories managers to hire previously unqualified individuals at lower wages. This change in hiring criteria for laboratory personnel, coupled with a declining interest in laboratory medicine as a career over the past two decades, has led to the closure of numerous medical technologist training programs. Now, students who are interested in pursuing a career as a laboratory professional face limited opportunities to do so. There are many dimensions to the current shortage of well-trained and qualified laboratory personnel and understanding the reasons for it will be essential to formulating an effective strategy to alleviate it. Like the nursing shortage, solving the medical laboratory personnel shortage will require a multifaceted approach. Many of the issues believed to be contributing to the shortage of nurses are the same factors affecting the shortage of laboratory personnel. Implementing recruitment and retention strategies similar to those employed by the nursing industry might prove to be equally effective in battling the current shortage of laboratory personnel, which is projected to worsen in the next five years. Similar to a shortage of nurses, a shortage of qualified laboratory staff, trained to perform tests that make early disease detection possible or enable physicians to diagnose and treat medical symptoms, seriously compromises patient care and safety. A coordinated effort involving the various clinical laboratory organizations, government agencies, and industry partners will be needed to examine the situation and determine what the profession as a whole can do. In addition, the involvement of stakeholders outside the laboratory, including other clinicians, health care administrators, legislators, and the public, in the formulation of a long-term solution will be essential if the U.S. is to elude a public health crisis in the next five to 10 years.