Workloads and Overall Performance of the Medical Technologists in Clinical Laboratories in a City in Panay, Philippines

AM  Perez,; A.  Asoy,; C.G.  Aguirre,; J.A.  Bacan,; P.M.  Bañas,; J.E.  Banlaoi,; J.  Bellion,; N.R.  Biogos,; K.R.  Bonite,; A.J.  Buico,; M.  Cabata,; F.  Penaverd,; R.  Visitacion,; C.  Guererro,

Workloads and Overall Performance of the Medical Technologists in Clinical Laboratories in a City in Panay, Philippines

Abstract:

Only a few studies focus on the issue of workloads in the medical technologist’s field. This study was conducted to describe the level of workloads and the overall performance and their correlation among the medical technologists in clinical laboratories in a city in Panay. The study used the descriptive-correlational research design. It utilized a 4-point Likert scale opinionnaire, that was validated, and with a reliability of 0.91 using Cronbach’s alpha. The data were obtained through Google Forms after signing the informed consent by the volunteered medical technologists. Most of the medical technologists from the five (5) clinical laboratories were female (n = 30, 79%), and working privately owned (n = 25, 66%). The majority of the laboratories can provide tertiary service capability (n = 26, 68%). The largest percentage of the respondents belong to the age bracket of 21-30 years old (n = 31, 82%) with less than 10 years of experience (n = 36, 95%). The study found that medical technologists were experiencing excessive workloads but their level of overall performance was highly satisfactory. Furthermore, there was no significant relationship between the workloads and the overall performance (pre-analytical, analytical, and postanalytical phases). This may serve as the basis for hiring more women, 21-30 years old medical technologists, and pairing them with those aging above 30 years old. However, those medical technologies having 11 to 20 years of experience should be kept, even if they are older. These management strategies may help in implementing a better system that ensures highly satisfactory performance even if the workloads are excessive among medical technologists.

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