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American Society for Clinical Pathology

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American Society for Clinical Pathology
AbbreviationASCP
TypeNonprofit
Registration no.36-2406080
HeadquartersChicago
Locations
CEO
Ervin Blair Holladay, Ph.D., MASCP, SCT(ASCP)CM
Revenue (2022)
US$32 million
Expenses (2022)US$29 million
Websitewww.ascp.org

The American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP), formerly known as the American Society of Clinical Pathologists is a professional association based in Chicago, Illinois encompassing 130,000 pathologists and laboratory professionals.

Founded in 1922, the ASCP provides programs in education, certification and advocacy on behalf of patients, pathologists and lab professionals.[1] In addition, the ASCP publishes numerous textbooks, newsletters and other manuals, and publishes two industry journals: American Journal of Clinical Pathology(AJCP) and LabMedicine.[2]

The current CEO since 2010 is Ervin Blair Holladay, Ph.D., MASCP, SCT(ASCP)CM who collects an annual salary of US$1 million.

Acquisitions

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In February 2006, ASCP acquired the cytology product line of the Midwest Institute for Medical Education (MIME).[3] At the time, it was the only national cytology proficiency testing provider.[4]

In 2009, ASCP acquired the medical technologist led National Credentialing Agency for Laboratory Personnel (NCA).[5] The baccalaureate-level certification designations Medical Technologist (MT) and Clinical Laboratory Scientist (CLS) were replaced by Medical Laboratory Scientist, MLS(ASCP)CM.[5] The BOC Board of Governors will be composed of five ASCP Fellows (pathologists), five ASCP laboratory professionals, four representatives of ASCLS, two representatives of the Association of Genetic Technologists, eight representatives from the eight participating societies respectively, and one public representative.[5] The acquisition was criticized by AMT as doing little to further the standing of laboratory professionals.[6]

In 2021, ASCP acquired the Clinical Laboratory Management Association (CMLA).[7] CMLA had advocated against laboratory personnel licensure as an unnecessary cost.

Board of Registry (BOR)

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[MT ASCP] is becoming increasingly important and will serve in to place trained laboratory technicians in a more secure competition with those whose training has been more superficial.

Bureau of Laboratories, New Brunswick (1938)[8]

The ASCP Board of Registry (BOR) was established in 1928 as the "Registration Bureau for Technicians" as the first certification agency for clinical laboratory personnel in the US.[9][10] ASCP was the first professional medical organization to set standards for laboratory professionals, which initially only required a recommendation from a member.[10] Those recommended were subsequently registered with ASCP, hence name the Board of Registry.[10] In 1931, there were two classifications for registrants: Laboratory Technician (L.T.) and Medical Technologist (M.T.).[11][9] The L.T. designation was granted to all technicians who met the minimum requirements without the examination.[11] The M.T. designations was issued to applicants who met rigid requirement of the Board and were individually elected at each annual meeting.[11] The first certification was issued in 1930 to Paul H. Adams of Fort Wayne, Indiana.[11][9] In 1933, ASCP began to assess individuals for academic and clinical prerequisites, and those who passed a board examination were granted certification.[10] The initial certifications included a written and practical component.[11] In 1935 the title Medical Technologist (MT) automatically to those certified Laboratory Technicians with college degrees.[9] In 1936, the "Laboratory Technician" designation is retired and subsequent registrants are designated Medical Technologists and the academic requirements were raised to two years of college.[9] In 1938, the Registry was renamed from the Registry of Technicians to the Registry of Medical Technologists.[11] As Canadian pathology society did not have a registry, interested Canadian medical technologists sat for the Amereican ASCP MT certification instead.[8] In 1939, the BOR publishes the first book outlining the educational curriculum for medical technologists entitled Curriculum for Schools of Medical Technology.[10][9] In 1940, as other organizations began using the same designations, the initials MT(ASCP) were used.[9][11] In 1944, due to travel wartime restrictions from World War II, the practical component of the certification was discontinued.[11] In 1948, the written essay portion of the certification was deemed too cumbersome to assess, and the certification was switched to a multiple choice and true-false assessment that could be graded on a machine and provide exam statistics.[9][11] In 1949, the BOR changed the exam format to a 200 multiple choice question exam as the multiple choice questions were found to be a more reliable indicator than true-false questions.[12] In 1949, the BOR also created the Board of Schools (BOS) for registering schools.[12] In 1958, BoR and ASMT assisted with the reclassification of medical technologists, putting them at the professional level in the Civil Service and allowing medical technologists to gain commission status in the US military.[11]

In 1962, the BoR began requiring 3 years of college for the MT certification.[11][12] In 1972, the BoR began requiring a Bachelor's degree for the MT certification.[12]

There were 100,000 certificates issued by 1975, 200,000 by 1980, 300,000 by 1991, 400,000 by 2005, and 500,000 by 2014.[9]

In July 1991, BOR administered their first Computer adaptive tests the ASCP headquarters for the Medical Technologist (MT), Medical Laboratory Technician (MLT), Phlebotomy Technician (PBT), Cytotechnologist (CT), and Histologic Technician (HT) certification examinations.[13]

In 1994, BOR changed their examination format to Computerized adaptive testing (CAT).[9]

In 2004, the BOR implemented the Certification Maintenance Program (CMP) requiring continuing education every three years to remain certified.[9]

Controversy

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Through its efforts to standardize the training of medical technologists, the Registry has come to be recognized by the leading medical and hospital groups as the only authoritative qualifying body for this field...The Registry, therefore, while purely voluntary and non-coercive, is universally accepted as the authoritative organization for qualifying the medical technologists in the United States.

Marketing brochure, ASCP Board of Registry (1966)[14]

In the 1960s, the BOR Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct placed professional limitations on medical technologists requiring "A medical technologist will work at all times under the direction or supervision of a pathologist or other duly qualified and licensed doctor of medicine, such qualifications being determined on the basis of accepted medical ethics" and that "A medical technologist will not act as owner, co-owner, advisor or employee, or by means of any subterfuge, participate in an arrangement whereby an individual not regularly licensed to practice medicine is enabled to own or operate a laboratory of clinical pathology."[14] In 1965, Janet Higgins, an ASCP certified medical technologist, was removed from the Board of Registry (BOR) because she was employed at a New Jersey laboratory where the director was a state-licensed bio-analytical laboratory director, but not a physician.[14] Though New Jersey has never required the certification for employment, the technologist successfully sued ASCP under monopolistic restraint of trade to be reinstated to the registry with the Supreme Court of New Jersey finding that the "professional status conferred on plaintiff by her certificate is an interest of sufficient substance to warrant the protection of the court."[14][15][16][17] The lawsuit, and the focus on pathologists over medical technologists spurred other medical technologist societies, such as the American Society for Medical Technology (ASMT) to promote the creation of their own certifying boards.[15]

The BOR bylaws were updated following the transition from the American Society of Clinical Pathologists to American Society for Clinical Pathology.

Board of Schools (BOS)

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In 1949, ASCP stablished the Board of Schools (BOS) for accrediting medical technologist programs and published the Essentials of an Acceptable MT School.[10] In 1973, following antitrust litigation by the United States Department of Education, the ASCP Board of Schools became the independent National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences.[10][12]

Initiatives

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In 2022 ASCP received a multi-year grant over $1M to promote the CDC OneLab initiative, a network of laboratory professionals and testers to support rapid, large-scale responses to public health emergencies.[18][19]

Certifications

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ASCP offers a number of certifications.[20] International certifications taken outside the United States are denoted as ASCPi.[21] As of 2022, there were 580,000 ASCP and 20,800 ASCPi certificates awarded.[22][23] In 2023, the number of MLS ASCPi applicants exceeded the number of MLS ASCP applicants.

Outside the US, the Philippines is largest ASCPi market with a third of eligible Filipino graduates applying for the MLS (ASCPi) certification annually.[24] The credential is not required for practice in the Philippines, but is appealing for its international work eligibility, primarily immigration to the United States.[24][25]

Name Abbreviation Level First Offered Discontinued Notes
Technologist in Blood Banking BB Technologist 1983[9]
Technologist in Chemistry C Technologist 1948[11]
Technologist in Cytogenetics CG Technologist 2010[9]
Cytologist CT Technologist 1957[9] Formerly Cytotechnologist
Histotechnologist HTL Technologist 1980[9]
Technologist in Immunology I Technologist 1980[9]
Technologist in Microbiology M Technologist 1948[11] Formerly Bacteriologist, changed in 1953[11]
Medical Laboratory Scientist MLS Technologist 1933[9] Formerly Medical Technologist (MT)
Technologist in Molecular Biology MB Technologist 2003 Formerly Technologist in Molecular Pathology (MP)
Hemapheresis Practitioner HP Specialist 1993[9] 2009 Superseded by Qualification in Apheresis (QIA)
Specialist in Blood Banking SBB Specialist 1954[9]
Specialist in Chemistry SC Specialist 1954[9]
Specialist in Cytology SCT Specialist 1959[9] Formerly Specialist in Cytotechnology
Specialist in Cytometry SCYM Specialist 2017[9]
Specialist in Hematology SH Specialist 1968[9]
Specialist in Laboratory Safety SLS Specialist 2000[9] 2011 Superseded by Qualification in Laboratory Safety (QLS)
Specialist in Immunology SI Specialist 1982[9]
Specialist in Microbiology SM Specialist 1953[9]
Specialist in Virology SV Specialist 1988[9]
Specialist in Molecular Biology SMB Specialist 2018[9]
Diplomate in Laboratory Management DLM Other 1989[9]
Diplomate in Medical Laboratory Immunology DLMI Other 2023[26]
Pathologists' Assistant PA Other 2005[9]
Apheresis Technician AT Technician 2003 2009 Superseded by Qualification in Apheresis (QIA)
Donor Phlebotomy Technician DPT Technician 2003[9]
Histotechnician HT Technician 1948[11] Formerly Histologic Technician[11]
Laboratory Aide LA Technician 1948[11] 1964[12] Replaced by Clinical Laboratory Assistant (CLA)
Clinical Laboratory Assistant CLA Technician 1963[9] 1982[9]
Medical Laboratory Assistant MLA Technician 2015[9]
Medical Laboratory Technician MLT Technician
Phlebotomy Technician PBT Technician 1990[9]
Gynecologic Cytologist CTgyn Technologist
Qualification in Biorepository Science QBRS Qualification 2020[9]
Qualification in Donor Phlebotomy QDP Qualification
Qualification in Apheresis QIA Qualification
Qualification in Cytometry QCYM Qualification 1993[9] 2017
Qualification in Immunohistochemistry QIHC Qualification 1994[9]
Qualification in Lab Informatics QLI Qualification 2003 2017
Qualification in Laboratory Safety QLS Qualification
Qualification in Laboratory Compliance QLC Qualification 2003 Yes
Qualification in Point of Care Testing Evaluator QPOCTE Qualification 1997 Yes

Accreditation agencies

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The following lists the eligible programs under accreditation agencies[27]

References

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  1. ^ "Fifty Years of Service—The History of ASCP". Laboratory Medicine. 2 (6): 17–26. 1 June 1971. doi:10.1093/labmed/2.6.17.
  2. ^ "History of ASCP". Archived from the original on 2009-01-09. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
  3. ^ Bonfiglio, Thomas A.; Nayar, Ritu; Abdul-Karim, Fadi W.; Cahill, Leigh Ann; Filomena, Carol A.; Goulart, Robert A.; Ali, Syed; Atkison, Karen N.; Bourtsos, Eleni; Covell, Jamie L.; Dawson, Andrea E.; De Frias, Denise V.S.; Dieterich, Mark; Duggan, Maire A.; Russell, Donna K.; Riedy, Dawn; Salhadar, Alia; Smith, Nancy J.; Metzler, Rhonda L.; Clark, Jennifer (December 2006). "ASCP Sets High Standards for Regulatory Gynecologic Cytology Proficiency Testing". Laboratory Medicine. 37 (12): 733–735. doi:10.1309/3JA3NWCH2VY9HDKL.
  4. ^ "State Survey Agency (SA) Responsibilities for 2007 Regarding Gynecologic Cytology Proficiency Testing (PT) under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA) and Additional Program Information—UPDATE" (PDF). CMS. December 7, 2006. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Morris, Susan (January 2010). "Unification of the NCA and the ASCP Board of Registry". American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science. 23 (1): 2–4. doi:10.29074/ascls.23.1.2. PMID 20218088.
  6. ^ Damon, Christopher (2009). "What does the ASCP-NCA merger mean for AMT members?". American Medical Technologists.
  7. ^ "ASCP and CLMA Align to Provide Excellence, Education, and Advocacy for Laboratory Professionals". ASCP. Dec 1, 2021. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  8. ^ a b Twohig, Peter (2005). Labour in the Laboratory: Medical Laboratory Workers in the Maritimes, 1900-50. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. pp. 87–89. ISBN 978-0-7735-2861-1. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al "ASCP BOARD OF CERTIFICATION TIMELINE (1920s to 2010s)" (PDF). American Society for Clinical Pathology. June 2020. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g Rodriguez, Fred H.; Ball, John R. (October 2007). "The American Society for Clinical Pathology: The Pathology Society of "Firsts"". Laboratory Medicine. 38 (10). American Society for Clinical Pathology: 595–601. doi:10.1309/RTKE4EKQ61HMN37U. Archived from the original on 2009-08-04. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "ASCP History 1930-1962" (PDF). American Society for Clinical Pathology. 2018. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  12. ^ a b c d e f Butina, M; Leibach, EK (2014). "From Technical Assistants to Critical Thinkers: The Journey to World War II" (PDF). Clinical Laboratory Science. 27 (4): 209–219. doi:10.29074/ascls.27.4.209. PMID 26084148. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  13. ^ "ASCP Board of Registry Computer Adaptive Certification Examination". Laboratory Medicine. 22 (6): 391. 1 June 1991. doi:10.1093/labmed/22.6.391. Retrieved 23 April 2024.
  14. ^ a b c d "Higgins v. American Society of Clinical Pathologists 51 N.J. 191 (1968) 238 A.2d 665". Justia. February 5, 1968. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  15. ^ a b DiIulio, Renee (Jul 10, 2006). "The Science of Credentialing Scientists - Mending Broken Fences". Clinical Lab Products. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  16. ^ Kathleen McLoughlin Kenwright (Oct 27, 2016). "An Examination of Career Satisfaction for Medical Laboratory Professionals Using Wlodkowski's Motivational Framework". Electronic Theses and Dissertations. The University of Memphis. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  17. ^ "American Society of Medical Technologists". Certification in Allied Health Professions. 1971 Conference Proceedings. Public Health Service (DHEW), Washington, D. C. Div. of Allied Health Manpower. 1972. pp. 68–72. Retrieved 22 March 2024.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  18. ^ "ASCP SUPPORT OF THE ONELAB INITIATIVE: ENHANCING CLINICAL LABORATORY WORKFORCE CAPACITY - No. NU47OE000107". HHS. 2024. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  19. ^ "CDC Awards ASCP Grant to Strengthen Lab Workforce". ASCP. Aug 26, 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  20. ^ "ASCP History 1994-2018" (PDF).
  21. ^ "GUIDE TO THE CITATION OF ASCP BOARD OF CERTIFICATION CREDENTIALS" (PDF). ASCP. Feb 2023.
  22. ^ "ASCP BOC Certification Examinations, 2022" (PDF). ASCP.
  23. ^ "ASCPi BOC Certification Examinations, 2022" (PDF). ASCP.
  24. ^ a b Finnegan, Kathleen (2021). "Addressing Opportunities & Misunderstandings of ASCP BOC International Certification in the Philippines". ASCP 2021 - ASCP Board of Certification International Credentialing Committee (PDF). ASCP. Abstract 3604057. Archived from the original on 2024-02-18. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
  25. ^ "2020 BOC International Survey Philippines Report" (PDF). ASCP. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-02-18.
  26. ^ Khanolkar, Aaruni; Spiczka, Amy; Bonfield, Tracey L.; Alexander, Thomas S.; Schmitz, John L.; Boras, Diana; Fong, Karen; Nandiwada, Sarada L.; Miller, Gerald C.; Tebo, Anne E. (2023-08-28). "Diplomate in Medical Laboratory Immunology Certification Examination: A New Chapter for Medical Laboratory Immunology". ImmunoHorizons. 7 (8): 600–610. doi:10.4049/immunohorizons.2300030. ISSN 2573-7732. PMC 10587505. PMID 37639224.
  27. ^ "BOC Resources To Support Your Programs". www.ascp.org. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
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