How Long Does it Take to Become a Phlebotomist – (And Why)?

Exact Answer: About 3 and a half months

Just like any other career, most of you would probably want to become a phlebotomist in the future. A phlebotomist simply is a medical technician whose role is to draw blood from patients for either transfusion, donation, research or medical analysis.

Since many of you are uneasy during the blood sampling process, it is, therefore, the duty of a phlebotomist to ease your minds and make sure you are comfortable enough. Subsequently, they communicate to you through the blood collection procedure.

How long does it take to become a phlebotomist?

This is most probably the very first question that you would ask in case you are looking to undertake its training. The course is less than a year, that is approximately three and a half months. Within this specific period, you will get your papers and most probably have a job as a fully trained phlebotomist.

There are several factors that would determine how long it would take you to be a phlebotomist, namely;

Duration of training – You can opt to train immediately after your high school studies, that is if you are qualified enough for the course. Additionally, employers prefer qualified candidates simply because it would take them fewer training hours and will be less costly too.

Most medical courses are costly but with the best choice of a program, you can finish your course with very minimal time and start earning a living.

Level of skills – How well you acquire skills will determine how long your course will take. Your program training is meant to develop and polish your skills necessary in helping you carry out your role as a phlebotomist.

During your training, you will get to familiarise yourself with medical terminologies and learn to identify appropriate veins and blood sampling techniques. Skills on how to handle needles will be more helpful to avoid the spread of blood-related diseases.

Communication skills – This plays a very vital role during the handling of your patient, especially children and the elderly who are most worried. How you communicate with them will help them calm them down thereby enabling you to finish the entire procedure successfully.

On the other hand, if you are a poor communicator, it means your training session can be prolonged until you acquire basic skills.

Why it takes that long

There are a number of reasons why it might time either long or short time for you to finish and these include;

Availability of funds – Your financial status determines what period of time you have to acquire this course. Thus, if you are financially unstable you will probably take longer compared to others.

Level of understanding – Your level of understanding can either enable you to finish faster or delay your training sessions. If you are a fast learner, you are at an advantage. Nevertheless, if you are a slow learner you might need more time for better understanding.

Professionalism level of your lecturer – How professional your lecturer is will determine how long or short time your training will take. A well trained lecturer is able to instil good skills in you fastening your studying compared to a less trained one.

Conclusion

Phlebotomist is a great career choice that promises fast career growth. Therefore, make sure you start your career on an excellent note so as to establish yourself a good reputation.

References

1. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1537-2995.2006.00908.x