Is Medical Laboratory Tech an Ideal Career for You?

A medical laboratory tech is a new field. It’s a great profession that lets you work in the healthcare industry.

There are tons of schools out there that offer medical tech programs. Each course lets you monitor treatments, test samples, study blood cells, and input test results in patient’s records, among others.

To accomplish your task, you will need to use microscopes and other laboratory equipment.

But is this career the right one for you?

Work in a healthcare industry with little patient contact

This is the right career for you if you want to work in this industry but you don’t want to work be in contact with patients all the time.

Most of the time, you’ll be analyzing and testing fluids inside the laboratory. You’ll still face patients but you’ll spend most of your working hours in the lab determining the real reason of a patient’s illness.

Flexible

Medical laboratory tech requires a person to be flexible. Medical tech programs will teach you how to multi-task. By this it means that you will need to know how to run a pregnancy test while you conduct a urinalysis. You also have to check patient’s blood count.

Essentially, you will run all samples until the end of your shift. When you work in a smaller hospital, you will be the medical tech and the phlebotomist. Your employer may also require you to perform other things, such as x-rays.

With strong communication skills

Medical laboratory tech must have excellent communication skills. You may think that this profession will not allow you to work with a medical team.

But the truth is that you are part of a medical team, even though you spend most of your time in a lab.

You’ll need excellent communication skills because you need to explain some procedures to the patients.

You may also need to compare notes with your colleagues or report test results.

Keep in mind that miscommunication will result in misdiagnosis. And this may lead to a malpractice lawsuit, if worse comes to worst.

With proper communication skills, you can easily convey accurate results to the doctors of your patients.

Have strong interest in science

To work as a medical laboratory tech, you must have a strong background in physiology and chemistry. Medical tech programs in various schools will help you understand chemical compositions and interactions.

Learning these things can be very exciting for those who are interested in science. If you don’t have that interest, you might not find this career fulfilling.

But it does not mean that you have to be an expert in science. A medical laboratory tech profession will only require you to be knowledgeable about science. To learn more about it, you need to take medical tech programs.

If you can relate to all of these things, then you might be ready to have a career as a medical laboratory tech. but you must first consider taking medical tech programs. This career may also lead to taking up medicine and becoming a medical doctor.

In the Philippines, there are many schools that offer medical tech programs. One of them is San Pedro College in Davao City. 

New Health Information About Ebola

What’s the new health information about the deadly Ebola?

The Philippines is still free of the deadly Ebola virus. US, on the other hand, has a few cases.

In Ohio, there are 116 people being monitored for any symptoms of this disease. This is done after a Dallas nurse tested positive for Ebola. She’s the same nurse who treated the first patient who died of the virus in the US.

In West Africa, the WHO has already proclaimed an international health emergency following the death of more than 3,859 people caused by Ebola virus in Nigeria.

This viral illness will cause initial symptoms of sudden fever, muscle pain, sore throat and intense weakness. If the symptoms aren’t treated immediately, they could lead to vomiting and diarrhea. And in some severe cases, they could cause internal and external bleeding, which may result in death.

The new health information about Ebola is that the WHO is now considering it as the deadliest, since it was discovered in 1976.

How Ebola infects human?

Infectious disease experts fear that this deadly virus could actually mutate causing an airborne disease, which could be transmitted through cough and sneeze.

But I’m hoping that it won’t come to that.

For now, the disease is transmitted through close contact with infected animals. When you have direct contact with those animals through their bodily fluids and contaminated environments, you’ll surely catch the disease. Funerals of Ebola victims can cause a risk of spreading the disease, especially if the mourners would come in direct contact with the victim’s body.

New health information - How it’s diagnosed?

It’s still difficult to diagnose the virus. This is because its symptoms are not specific to this infection. Sometimes, the symptoms can be mistaken for malaria and typhoid fever.

The diagnostic tests available in detecting the virus will include antigen-capture ELISA, IgM ELISA, PCR, and virus isolation.

How to avoid it?

You must avoid having direct contact with Ebola patients, especially their bodily fluids. Thus, you must steer clear of sharing towels.

To fight the virus, you need to wash your hands or improve your hygiene.

Don’t shake hands or even kiss someone with this virus. In fact, Liberia’s health minister recommended stopping having sex. Bear in mind that sexual intercourse may also cause infection to spread through semen, even the male partner has already recovered from Ebola.

New health information – Is Ebola the new AIDS?

As new cases of Ebola heightened, many experts are now comparing it with AIDS. Fortunately, Ebola won’t be on the same league as AIDS, when it comes to infections and deaths. Although the virus has already caused 4,500 deaths in West Africa alone, the number is nothing compared to more than a million of deaths per year from AIDS on the same continent.

The scariest thing about virus-causing Ebola is that it can quickly kill the sufferer. In HIV cases, an infected person won’t experience symptoms for several years. But this makes HIV a more dangerous disease as an infected person can spread the infection for years without him/her knowing it.

Ebola, on the other hand, may kill the sufferers dramatically. But because its symptoms show up within a few days, it’ll help experts in identifying and isolating cases so they’ll be monitored properly.

Holistic Treatment for Arthritis – 4 Natural Remedies

If you’re an arthritis sufferer, then you’ll be glad to know that holistic treatment for arthritis is now available. Well, it’s been obtainable for thousands of years. The only problem is that most sufferers use synthetic medicines to alleviate their signs and symptoms.

More and more people are now turning into the natural approach in relieving the pain and swelling associated with arthritis. On this post, you’ll find some of the best natural remedies for arthritis. They’re known to have anti-inflammatory properties. That said, they can be of great use in treating your RA or rheumatoid arthritis.

Aloe vera

It’s a useful holistic treatment for arthritis that offers several healing properties. Although it’s known for its skin benefits, aloe vera can be used in soothing or relieving the pain caused by this condition.

You may choose to obtain aloe vera in liquid form or in gel form, it doesn’t matter. Each form offers some great relief to your pain.

Cat’s claw

In the Philippines, you can easily find it anywhere. From farm to schools to a lawn, cat’s claw is easy to obtain.

This has anti-inflammatory properties that may be useful in reducing the swelling caused by arthritis. It comes from a tropical vine. The benefits of cat’s claw have been noted since Inca civilizations.

Before, its benefits were focused on boosting immune system. However, in recent years, researchers found its ability to reduce swelling in patients with arthritis. In fact, in a study conducted at the University of Maryland Medical Center, it showed that this herb could treat the pain and swelling of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t have scientific proof if it could prevent further damage to the joints affected.

Ginger

This, too, is easy to find. In fact, you may have one in your kitchen right now. In various alternative medicines, ginger becomes a staple. Thanks to its many healing properties.

The compounds that make this herb to have stronger flavor are the same compounds that make this herb a wonderful holistic treatment for arthritis. Studies about ginger in alleviating arthritis pain are still ongoing. However, the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine says that the results of the studies are promising.

Green tea

This is another reason you should go for green tea, rather than soda if you have arthritis. It turns out. Green tea isn’t only effective in helping you lose weight but it’s also very useful in reducing inflammation caused by arthritis. Hence, it’s a great holistic treatment for arthritis that you can try.

Consult your physician

Even though these holistic treatments for arthritis can offer better results than conventional medicines, it’s still essential that you consult your case with your physician. These days, more and more doctors are willing to look into the benefits of alternative remedies, rather than forcing their patients to take synthetic medicines.

You also have to talk to your doctor about these herbs because some of them may interact with your current medicine. It’s important to remember that natural remedies can still cause serious negative effects.