A Literature Review on How We Can Address Medical Laboratory Scientist Staffing Shortages

Objective: Laboratories are facing a critical shortage of medical laboratory scientists (MLS) and medical laboratory technicians (MLT) to address an increasing demand for laboratory testing. Training program closures, fewer student applicants, and financial decisions have contributed to staffing shortages. Lack of visibility, low wages, and perceived lack of opportunities for upward career mobility contribute to challenges in recruiting and retaining qualified individuals and students who are unaware of laboratory medicine careers. Our goal was to review the literature to determine the current state and consequences of staffing shortages, and potential solutions to address these shortages. Methods: Medline/PubMed, PubMed Central, MeSH, Google Scholar, and Marshall Digital Scholar were used as resources. Discussion/Conclusions: A collaboration of stakeholders is needed to identify staffing challenges, barriers, and solutions and to increase visibility of laboratory professionals. Early recruitment is best started in the middle and high school educational process.