Healthcare Technician: Phlebotomy

The Healthcare Technician: Phlebotomy Program leads to a Level 1 Certificate.  The curriculum includes courses in an Introduction to Healthcare, Medical Terminology, Technical Calculations, and Phlebotomy.  Clinical experiences are provided in area hospitals and clinics.

Certification:

After completing the six required Healthcare Technician: Phlebotomy courses, you will receive a Level 1 Certificate and will then also be eligible for the Phlebotomy Blood Technician (PBT) national certification examination administered by the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP). https://www.ascp.org/content/board-of-certification/get-credentialed

At this time, the state of Texas does not require any type of licensing examination for phlebotomists; however, completion of this program will often allow you to take the licensing examinations in other states. 

Information:

Program Student Handbook

THECB Statutory Requirement

If you are not a current or past student of St. Philip's College (Alamo Colleges), you must first apply for admission to the college. 

The Phlebotomy courses are structured as follows: the first Phlebotomy course, PLAB 1223, which is the didactic lecture and lab portion, begins at the start of each Flex one semester and occurs on Saturdays throughout the semester (8.5 hours each day).  The next Phlebotomy course is the 3-week clinical rotation, which occurs for 3 concurrent weeks sometime during the Flex 2 semester: Mondays through Fridays for 8.5 hours during the day (schedule set by the hospital or clinical affiliate).  If you are working during the day or taking any day classes, this is an obvious conflict, as you would not be able to complete your clinical rotation.

Once you are accepted into the Phlebotomy program, you will then receive an email via Aces prior to the beginning of the semester, from the program director or clinical coordinator with instructions on how to begin the criminal background check and drug screen. At this point, it is also recommended that you start preparing all of your immunizations for the clinical rotation in Phlebotomy.

One of the four courses that are required for the Healthcare Technician: Phlebotomy certificate is:  HITT 1305 Medical Terminology 1.  It is an online course that is recommended students register to complete in advance before beginning phlebotomy specific courses.  The PLAB 1263 clinical rotation course is offered in the second flex semester of the fall and spring semesters.  The clinical rotation is a 3-week rotation (40 hours per week, during the day, Mondays through Fridays).  Students are not informed of their clinical placement (dates and location) until approximately two weeks prior to the start of the flex 2 semester.  There is also a Thursday morning PLAB 1223 class in the spring, but this section is primarily reserved for MLT (Medical Laboratory Technician) students and is a sixteen-week class.  Occasionally, students with the program director’s permission may register to take this class.

This program requires submission of an application via post-stamped mail directly to the program director. 

Admission priority consideration will be given to students who:

1. Want to work as a phlebotomist

2. Students who have taken or are enrolled to take HITT 1305: Medical Terminology I

The application deadline is July 15 for Fall and November 30 for Spring. ONLY 15 students are accepted into the program each semester.  No over-rides may be performed by ANYONE for admission into the class, once the maximum enrollment number has been reached.

Enrollment is on a first-come, first serve basis and is limited to the first 15 students.

Once students are enrolled, the clinical coordinator will then contact the student to request records of their immunizations.  The immunization requirements are mandated by the State of Texas for all Health Sciences students.  Students must complete the following list of immunizations and other requirements, prior to attending clinical rotations (by the requested deadline), at the student's expense.  Failure to complete the required immunizations will prevent the student from participating in clinical rotations.

The immunizations and other requirements are as follows:

• TB Skin Test (must be within the current year)
• Tetanus/Diptheria/Pertussis (DTAP)
• Mumps/Measles/Rubella (MMR)
• Hepatitis B
• Varicella
• Bacterial Meningitis
• Seasonal flu shot

Complete an American Heart Association (AHA) BLS Health Care Provider CPR course for certification (online course not permitted).

The student must provide proof of medical/health insurance coverage to the clinical coordinator prior to attending clinical rotations.

 Program Curriculum

Application and required documents can be mailed to the address below or can be dropped off at the Health Science Department front office located on the first floor of the Center for Health Professions building.

1801 Martin Luther King Drive
San Antonio, Texas 78203

ATTN: James Williams
MLK Center for Health Professions (CHP), 330V  

Program Application and Checklist

No person shall, on the basis of race, color, sex, pregnancy, religion, creed, national origin (including ancestry), citizenship status, physical or mental disability, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, transgender status, gender identity, gender expression, veteran or military status (including special disabled veteran, Vietnam-era veteran, or recently separated veteran), predisposing genetic characteristics, domestic violence victim status, any other protected category under applicable local, state or federal law, or persons who have opposed discrimination or participated in any complaint process on campus or before a government agency, be excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or subjected to discrimination in employment or under any program or activity sponsored or conducted by the College District. H.1.1