Medical laboratory workforce trends and projections: what is past is prologue

During the last several decades, supply and demand trends for clinical laboratory personnel have been cyclical. Factors such as quantity of graduates from accredited training programs, quality and quantity of career recruitment, growth of new technologies, automation, downsizing, and consolidation of services have affected the balance of workers needed to meet demand. More recently, several additional forces led to a potential long-term shortage of clinical laboratory personnel. This article reviews major studies of staffing strategies and outlines strategies of the American Hospital Association to ease the current shortage crisis.