Clinical chemist (Klinisch chemicus)

Information on this skill...

Team Mijnzzp

A clinical chemist is a laboratory specialist who works in a hospital. The main task of a clinical chemist is to analyze blood and other bodily fluids on behalf of medical specialists. Before a doctor can determine a treatment method, it is important that the doctor knows exactly which disease he or she is dealing with. It is the clinical chemist who will examine the blood or other body fluids on behalf of the doctor, so that the doctor in question can eventually draw up a treatment plan. A clinical chemist can examine blood, urine, and spinal fluid in a laboratory through the use of various instruments and devices. In general, a clinical chemist will not carry out the research himself, because there are other laboratory staff for this. A clinical chemist can be the person ultimately responsible for a hospital laboratory, but this does not always have to be the case, because there can also be several clinical chemists within a laboratory. A clinical chemist may also be the leader of certain research areas within the laboratory. A clinical chemist who works as head of a laboratory can also be seen as a manager. In that case, the clinical chemist is also responsible for all additional administrative and financial tasks related to the laboratory. The work of a clinical chemist can be regarded as important and specialist work, which should be left to the right specialists. The profession of clinical chemist is a profession at university level. A clinical chemist is employed within medicine and the natural sciences, which in this case usually involves practical research work. In addition, a clinical chemist may be responsible for conducting scientific research.

A clinical chemist is therefore a scientist who must be regarded as a laboratory specialist. In general, this concerns doctors, pharmacologists and biomedical scientists, who have the additional specialization clinical chemist. As a clinical chemist, quality assurance is an important word, because no mistakes should be made. As a clinical chemist, you supervise the work of other laboratory employees and analyse the research results of laboratory staff. Interpreting research results correctly is important, because doctors ultimately propose a treatment plan based on this data. A clinical chemist has to deal with various medical specialists. Think, for example, of cardiologists, internists, surgeons, allergists and physician-microbiologists. Thus, a clinical chemist is primarily responsible for supporting various medical specialists.

WHY INVESTIGATE BODY FLUIDS

The examination of body fluids is carried out in order to be able to detect certain diseases at an early stage or to prevent disease. If someone is ill, the body fluid can be examined to map the course of the clinical picture. Even when a patient has to undergo a blood transfusion, this will first be examined. By examining body fluids, it can be estimated which drugs work best and at what rate they are broken down by the body.

WHAT DOES A CLINICAL CHEMIST DO:

  • Researching body substances
  • Managing laboratory staff
  • Researching and analysing research results
  • Supervision (quality control and regulation)
  • Conducting scientific research
  • Supporting doctors and medical specialists
  • Giving a definite answer to doctors (what disease)

WHAT DOES A CLINICAL CHEMIST DO:

TRAINING TO BECOME A CLINICAL CHEMIST

The clinical chemist training is a heavy training that is only accessible to graduated university physicians, pharmacists, biochemists or, for example, medical biologists. The training laboratory specialist clinical chemistry will generally take at least four years and is only accessible after approval by the Registration Committee of the NVKC. As a clinical chemist, one must re-register every five years. The training to become a clinical chemist is a heavy study, which is not just accessible to everyone.

COMPANIES WHERE A CLINICAL CHEMIST MAY BE EMPLOYED

As a clinical chemist, you can work for various hospitals, such as a general hospital, a teaching hospital or a psychiatric hospital. In addition, as a clinical chemist you can conduct scientific research within a university or research institution.

COMPETENCES CLINICAL CHEMIST

As a clinical chemist, you are a scientific researcher and you will therefore need to have research skills. In addition, the word quality assurance is an important competence of a clinical chemist. Because a clinical chemist also has a leadership role within the hospital laboratory, you must also have excellent communication skills. Generally important words are analyzing, analytical, controlling, management, decisiveness, laws and regulations, eagerness to learn, planning, organizing and stress resistance. Obviously, a clinical chemist has to deal with fixed professional competencies, which are learned during the training.

LABOUR MARKET PERSPECTIVE AND CAREER OPPORTUNITIES AS A CLINICAL CHEMIST

The labour market perspective as a clinical chemist is generally good. Not everyone is eligible for the profession of clinical chemist, because it is a heavy study. The career opportunities as a clinical chemist should be seen in becoming head manager or obtaining a PhD as a clinical chemist. Furthermore, the career opportunities as a clinical chemist do not really apply, because it is already a profession at a high level.

TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT AND SALARY CLINICAL CHEMIST

As a clinical chemist, you will generally fall under the collective labour agreement for hospitals, in which the terms and conditions of employment are regulated. The salary as a clinical chemist will typically be between 6,000 and 11,000 gross per month, depending on age, years of service and further responsibilities.

The content on this page has been automatically translated from the Dutch language. For this reason, texts and videos on this page may contain small errors.

Lesen Sie diese Informationen auf Klinischer Chemiker auf Deutsch.

Lea esta información sobre Quimico clínico en español.

Lees deze informatie over Klinisch chemicus in het Nederlands.

Mijnzzp.nl