Phlebotomy Courses

What You’ll Learn in Phlebotomy Courses

Phlebotomy is more than just taking blood. Phlebotomy courses, in addition to teaching collection techniques, prepare you for emergencies and help you understand proper laboratory procedures in order to avoid contamination or infection of yourself and others. Accredited phlebotomist technician programs will teach you all of the necessary techniques and procedures you’ll need to be a competent and skilled phlebotomist.

Common Training Classes

Some of the subjects you can expect to see in phlebotomy courses are:

• Anatomy and physiology – This includes the circulatory, lymphatic, respiratory, urinary, and muscular and skeletal systems.
• Blood and cell composition – Understanding how blood and cells are affected by infection and disease is at the crux of the phlebotomy field.
• Blood sampling procedures – Venipuncture, or vein puncture, is handled differently for different people. Newborns, children, adults and the elderly all have veins that require different techniques.
• Laboratory safety – Understanding how to safely handle lab equipment and clean up spills are key in keeping yourself and your co-workers protected from infection and physical harm.
• CPR – Lots of things can happen on the job. Being prepared with a CPR certification is a good idea. More phlebotomy courses are including CPR training in their curriculum.

Choose the Right Training Program

Once you’ve decided to get phlebotomy training, choosing the right school is the next step. Defining your priorities is a good place to start. Finding the right phlebotomy training program can be easy when you know what’s most important to you.

Here are some things to consider:

• Location – How important is it to find phlebotomy training close to home? If you’re willing to move to attend school, it may not be much of an issue for you. But if you’re looking for a campus within easy commuting distance, that will narrow your options.
• Time to completion – Phlebotomy training programs vary in length, from one semester to one year. Whether you need a flexible schedule and how fast you want to enter the workforce may determine which program length will work best for you.
• Accreditation – When you attend an accredited phlebotomy training school, you can be sure that your education meets the high standards required to get your certification and start your career. Accreditation will also enable you to apply for federal financial aid programs. Look for accreditation by the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences when you research programs.