Principles and Strategies of Teaching MLS

History of Medical Laboratory Science

AKA: Medical technology, Clinical Laboratory Science, Laboratory Technology

Learning Outcomes should be:

 Discuss the history of medical technology on a global context.

 Discuss the history of medical technology in the Philippines
 Understand and appreciate the birth of medical technology education in the Philippines and other countries.

What is Medical Technology?

Ruth Heinemann

It defines medical technology as the application of natural, physical, and biological sciences to the performance of
laboratory procedures which it can aid in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases.

Anne Fagelson

It defines medical technology as the branch of medicine that will concern with the performance of laboratory
determination.

Walters

This is the health profession that will concern with the performing laboratory analyses in the view of obtaining
information in the diagnosis and treatment of disease, and as well as the maintenance of good health.

RA 5527

Entitled as the Philippine Medical Technology Act of 1969. The branch of laboratory medicine which deals with the
examination of tissues, secretion, and other body fluids by various chemical, microscopic, bacteriologic, and other
medical laboratory procedures, wherein it can aid the physician in the diagnosis strictly and treatment of disease and
promotion of health in general.

Other definitions…

- In short, it can be an additional basis for the Doctor in order to treat the patient.
- Medical technologist are the ones who perform the laboratory procedures, that deals with body fluid samples
and specimen. With that, they analyze and derive the results later on, in which the results will be the basis of the
diagnosis and treatment.
- A clinical laboratory is headed by a pathologist. Laboratory results often have signatures of both medical
technologist and the pathologist.
- A medical technician are the people who studied MLS (earned a bachelor’s) but they have a board rating of
below 75%. They took the examination but they have the board rating of 70% - 74.99%.
- Parasitology, Clinical Bacteriology etc.
- One of the procedures they do is blood testing, under immunology and serology and interaction of antigen and
antibody. They test the effectivity of vaccines etc.
- They measure the substance in the blood and other body fluids.
- Remember to assure accuracy and precision, there is always quality control in the laboratory.
Early Beginnings: It is difficult to exactly say when and where medical laboratory science started.

450 BC People believed that diseases were sent as a punishment from the gods
Hippocrates - Father of medicine
- Thinking & looked on the body as a balance of humors: blood, sputum, black bile,
yellow bile
Clinical Technology
Earliest physicians used surgical tools—(thorns, shark teeth)
Vivien Herrick Traced by 1550 BC when intestinal parasites: Taenia sp. and Ascaris sp. Were mentioned in
early writings.
 Ascaris

lumbricoides egg

Ebers Papyrus – a book for treatment of diseases contains description of the three stages of hookworm infection. By
Georg Ebers
Ebers papyrus, Egyptian compilation of medical texts dated about 1550 bc, one of the oldest known medical works. The
scroll contains 700 magical formulas and folk remedies meant to cure afflictions ranging from crocodile bite to toenail
pain and to rid the house of such pests as flies, rats, and scorpions.

Development of MLS/MT

Ruth Williams Book “Introduction to the Profession of Medical Technology”

Quack Hindu
Dr. William Occam
Baron Karl Von Humbeldt
Dr. William Welch
1438 - Crude analysis
- Urine taste – there is a sweet taste in the urine sample to
conclude that a person has diabetes. (Polyuria is a condition
where the body urinates more than usual and passes excessive or
abnormally large amounts of urine each time you urinate.)
1800 Collecting evidence – investigation in laboratory findings
- Physical findings before and after death in anatomical pathology
(biopsy[before] and autopsy[after])
- Published a manual, “Bacteriology to the Evaluation of Diseases &
Laboratory exam”
1878 - Teaching microscopical courses
- Publishes a lab guide, Laboratory for bacterial studies & autopsies

Antonie Van Leewenhoek

- Invented and improved the compound microscope

 - The first to describe red blood cells, to see protozoa, and to classify bacteria according to shape.
- Invention of the microscope led to the rapid progress of microbiology pathology.
- Example of bacteria shapes: Cocci (spherical), bacilli (round or rectangular in shape)

Malphigi 1628-1694 (Marcello Malpighi according sa internet)

- Described as the “Greatest” of the early microscopist.

- His work on embryology and anatomy definitely marked him as “THE FOUNDER OF PATHOLOGY”. (study of
normal and abnormal tissues)

Rudolph Virchow 1847

- One of the youngest medical specialists

- Founded the ARCHIVES OF PATHOLOGY in Berlin in 1847.

Hermann Fehling 1848

- Performed the FIRST QUANTITATIVE TEST in Urine Sugar in 1848.

Middle of 15th Century

- Aniline Dyes were used in staining microorganisms

- Bacterial staining and microscopic study on bacteria were made possible.

Inventions & Innovations in the field of MLS

Edward Jenner 1796 Vaccinations: small pox

Marie Francois Xavier Bichat 1880 Identified organs by their types of tissues (epithelial, connective,
muscular, nervous)
Have a great contribution in the field of histology in MLS.
Agostino Bassi 1835 Produced diseased in worms by injection of organic material
Louis Pasteur 1857 Immunity to rabies
Gregor Mendel 1866 Enunciated his law of inherited characteristics from studies on
plants
Joseph Lister 1870 Demonstrated that surgical infections are caused by airborne
organism
Robert Koch 1877 First pictures of bacilli (Anthrax) and tubercle bacilli
Ellie Metchnikoff 1886 Described phagocytes in blood and role in fighting infection
Ernst von Bergmann Steam sterilization in surgery
Karl Landsteiner 1902 ABO Blood group system
August von Wassermann 1906 Immunologic test for syphilis
Howard Ricketts 1906 Discovered microorganisms whose range lies between bacteria and
viruses called rickettsiae
Hans Fischer 1929 Structure of hemoglobin
Jonas Salk 1954 Developed poliomyelitis vaccine
James Westgard 1973 Westgard Rules
Baruch Samuel Blumberg 1980 Hepatitis B Vaccine
Karry Mullis 1985 PCR
Andre van Steirteghem 1992 Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF)
James Thomson 1998 First human stem cell line

Development of MLS/MT
 Dr. Douglas 1884 First laboratory instruction
Dr. James Todd 1908 “Manual of Clinical Diagnosis”
University of Pennsylvania William 1896 First Clinical Laboratory
Pepper Laboratory

CLS Professions from Science of Clinical Pathology

1900 Laboratories began to hire bacteriologists during the TB and typhoid

outbreaks
1911 Laboratory science was accepted as basis for diagnosis of diseases
1915 Law: all hospitals should have a clinical laboratory, fulltime lab tech Pennsylvania, USA
1922 - First normal recognition of the profession
- ASCP
- To promote the practice of scientific medicine by a wider
application of clinical laboratory methods to diagnose diseases
1928 ASCP created a program to ensure the competence of the laboratory
workers through certification
1930 First ASCP issued certificate to 400 technicians
1933 ASCP requires to meet educational prerequisites and pass the written
and practical examinations to obtain certification
1940 ASCP required a 2—year collegiate education & 12—month actual
training in the laboratory
1950 Standard curriculum for Bachelor of Science degree

History of Medical Technology/MLS in the Philippines

1943

- The US Army left in June

- Endorsed it to the National Department of Health
- The Department rendered the laboratory non-functional for some time.
- Medical Technology Practice was introduced by the 26th Medical Infantry of the 6th US Army.

1944

- First Clinical Laboratory in the Philippines

- Quiricada ST., Sta. Cruz, Manila (Manila Public Health) –The lab offered training programs to high school
graduated as early as February 1944.

1945 - US Army left the 25th med lab to the Philippines – Dr. Alfredo Pio de Roda
DOH
- Public health laboratory
1947 PHL-MHD started training labtech Dr. Pio de Roda, Dr. Prudencia Sta.
Ana
1954 6-month laboratory training
- PUC offered BSMT
- First batch of graduates – 1956
1957 UST offered Medical Technology major in the degree of BS
Pharmacy (w/o internship)
 - Rev., Fr. Lorenzo Rodriguez decided to offer it as a course because of the popularity of medical technology
among pharmacy students.

June 17, 1957

- Temporary permit was issued by the Dept. of Education, for first to third year students.

June 1960

- The permit for the internship program was issued.

June 14, 1961

- Full recognition of the 4 year BS Medical Technology course was given on June 14, 1961.

1960 CEU – BSMT

1961 - FEU – BSMT under the college of medicine
- UP BS Hygiene
1963 Public Health Laboratory—organization of professionals, academicians from the allied profession
1964 PAMET started

Post Graduate Studies

- Offered to BS Medical Technology graduates

- MS in Medical Technology
o UST Graduate School
o Philippine Women’s University
o OLFU
o Lyceum of the Philippines MS MLS
- MS in Public Health (Thesis, non-thesis degree)
o University of the Philippines

**Research History/Development of MLS in other countries