Bio-Medical Laboratory Technology (Campus Geel)

Bio-Medical Laboratory Technology

About Bio-Medical Laboratory Technology

Bio-medical laboratory technology trains paramedical scientists who can conduct chemical, physical and biological analyses on substances originating from the human body or from other living creatures, such as plants, animals and micro organisms. The training is also closely linked to bio-medical sciences: we pay attention to the functioning of (human) cells and organs in healthy and ill conditions, though not in so much detail.

Analysing presupposes that you have sufficient lab skills and that you are in command of the techniques required for sample taking, research etc. within clinical chemistry, microbiology, haematology, cyto (histo) logy and in-vivo technology. The training is very practical, but the nature of the work demands a solid theoretical and scientific basis: e.g. you need to have insight in the importance of different research projects and their mutual relations to be able to interpret results correctly, and, obviously, you must be able to assess the safety risks involved.

Options:

Medical Laboratory Technology

Course content
In the option MLT you will learn about immunehematology, haemostasis, hematopathology, medical microbiology and clinical chemistry with accompanying techniques for analyzing human samples such as urine, blood, feces and cerebrospinal fluid.

Work placement
In the last semester, all MLT students go on a work placement in a hospital or medical lab to be introduced to the world of medicine and to learn how to analyse patient samples efficiently.

Job opportunities
Medical Lab Technologists mainly work in medical labs, labs for fundamental scientific research, institutions for practical R&D, government services, medical services or services of industrial medicine, and research, development and check labs of industry. Within this line of work, you can take up a wide range of activities. You have the required skills and the legal qualifications to work as a medical lab technologist in medical labs. In other words, you can conduct activities supporting medical diagnosis and follow-up of the progress of an illness and therapy. These activities involve sample taking, lab analyses, functional tests and technical activities with in vivo supply (e.g. you measure and assess the parameters of different biological functions, you use lab equipment to observe function systems).

You can work in these departments:

The clinical chemistry department (determination of enzymes, hormones, antibodies…)
The haematology department (determination of blood types, coagulation mechanisms etc.)
The microbiology department (identification of pathogenic germs as viruses and bacteria)

You can also start your career as an assistant in research and check-up labs of pharmaceutical and diagnostic industries, where you conduct analytical, biochemical, clinical, microbiological, haematological, immunological and histological analyses on substances originating from humans, plants, animals or micro-organisms. You can also work in research programmes for the development of new lab techniques, products and applications in medicine. There are jobs for you in quality services in the pharmaceutical industry, in recognised clinical labs, the food industry etc. As a technical-commercial assistant, you can be in sales and distribution, technical marketing and services for biomedical lab diagnostics and equipment, of pharmaceutical articles and medical equipment. Finally, you can work in secondary and higher education. Depending on your experience, personal qualities and efforts, you can become a chief lab technologist, project leader or quality control officer.

Pharmaceutical and Biological Laboratory Technology

Course content
The option PBT trains you to be a co-worker in the pharmaceutical or biomedical sectors. This requires a profound insight into the relations between structure, behaviour and function of the natural and synthetic bio-molecules present in man, animal and plant. This, in turn, demands a thorough knowledge of anatomy, physiology, histology, pharmaceutical chemistry, pharmacology, toxicology and the integration of these subjects into one. Furthermore, insight in galenic design and pharmaceutical production processes is absolutely necessary for jobs in quality control. A second important pillar is biotechnological science, where knowledge of molecular biology, virology, gene technology and immunology is essential. PBT is a practical training, in which a lot of attention is paid to the safe and accurate execution of techniques and analyses in pharmaceutical-biotechnological research.

Work placement
Third-year PBT students go on a six-month research work placement in a pharmaceutical company or molecular biology research institute. The subject of the work placement is a clearly defined scientific assignment. A company project leader and a lecturer supervise your placement activities. The lecturer regularly contacts the placement company to check whether you keep to your planning. A work placement abroad is an option as well.

Job opportunities
As a bachelor of pharmaceutical and biological techniques, you have the choice: you can work in industry or in research centres and governmental services. You can work in pharmaceutical and molecular-biological companies, in biological and toxicological labs and in pharmacies.

For a research function, you can start work in the molecular-biological sector, where you do research of viral, microbial, vegetable or animal systems. With the results of that research, you can develop new techniques and/or varieties for biotechnology. This research is mainly done at big universities. In the pharmaceutical sector, your job will be to organise and conduct lab tests to develop new products. You will also be responsible for quality control.

Also technical - commercial functions in the pharmaceutical and biotechnological sectors are within your reach. You can start your career as a pharmacy or doctor visitor or as an assistant