ASCP Phlebotomy Exam Content Guidelines Per ASCP BOC
PBT ASCP is one of the ASCP's highest volume certifications.
To achieve this certificate, you have to cover the ASCP phlebotomy exam content guidelines per ASCP BOC.
- The PBT ASCP is composed of 80 questions that are picked from the exam content areas, including the circulatory system, specimen collection, non-blood specimens, specimen processing, handling and transport, laboratory operation, and waived and point-of-care testing (POCT).
- The ASCP BOC limits 2 hours to cover this exam.
- The format of the PBT ASCP exam is CAT (computer adaptive testing), which checks the answers to your previous questions to display the next question; the correct answers will be the result of tough questions, and the wrong answers will be the result of easy questions.
The American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) Board of Certification (BOC) presents all the necessary resources for professionals to empower their careers.
For certification exam preparation, the ASCP BOC presents exam content guidelines (exam syllabus) and reading list resources (journals, books, and online associations).
If you have decided to get the PBT ASCP certificate, you must check the ASCP phlebotomy exam content guidelines per ASCP BOC.
The PBT ASCP content guidelines offer information about the subject; you need to pick, vital topics that you need to cover to ensure success.
In this article, we are going to cover the all ASCP phlebotomy exam content that the board determined for preparation.
Circulatory System: ASCP Phlebotomy Exam Content
The circulatory system is divided into three main categories.
These categories are the function and structure of the circulatory system, the function/composition of blood, and terminology.
It presents 5-10% of exam questions out of 100%.
Circulatory System Categories Classification:
Function and Structure
It describes the following part of the blood circulatory system;
- Capillaries
- Arteries
- Heart
- Veins
Function/Composition of Blood
Its focus areas are
- Cellular elements, including WBC, RBC, and platelets
- Blood types, including arterial, capillary, and venous
- Plasma
- Serum
Terminology
Specimen Collection: ASCP Phlebotomy Exam Content Guidelines
The specimen collection offers 40-45% of questions for PBT ASCP.
It is an important content area regarding acing the exam.
Here are the main topics of specimen collection:
- Identification of patient
- Techniques
- Order of Draw (Capillary, Venous)
- Terminology
- Site Selection
- Patient Preparation/Assessment
- Verification, clarification, and review of orders
- Common Tests
- Equipment (e.g., syringes, lancets, tourniquets, needles, and anticoagulants/tubes)
- Considerations and complications (mastectomy, hematoma, edema, and fainting)
- Patient Communication (special needs, age-specific needs, post and pre-collection instructions)
Specimen Processing, Handling, and Transport: ASCP Phlebotomy Exam Content
15-20% of exam questions (MCQs) are obtained from this content area.
Its major parts are sample acceptability for testing, specimen labeling and accessioning, specimen centrifugation & aliquoting, specimen storage and transport, and terminology.
Assess Specimen Acceptability for Testing
- Specific sample types include newborn screening, forensic, alcohol, and chain-of-custody.
- Selection of correct sample types for the test requested
- Quality of specimen: clotted sample, insufficient quantity, hemolysis, etc
- Sample acceptability for add-on experiments
Specimen Labeling and Accessioning
Specimen Centrifugation & Aliquoting
Specimen Storage and Transport
It includes the following content area
- Pneumatic tube
- Temperature
- Light
- Time
Terminology
Waived and Pint-of-Care Testing (POCT): FASCP Phlebotomy Exam Content
It covers the 5-10% of exam questions.
The key topics of waived and point-of-care (POCT) are test performance, instrumentation, and terminology.
Test Performance
- Glucose
- Hematocrit and Hemoglobin
- Kit Tests (e.g., COVID test, Strep screen, pregnancy test, rapid flu test)
- Urinalysis (dipstick, etc)
- Coagulation (PT/INR, etc)
Instrumentation
- Maintenance
- Troubleshooting and operation
- Quality control (internal & external controls)
Terminology
Non-Blood Specimen: ASCP Phlebotomy Exam Content Guidelines
Non-blood specimens present 5-10% of questions for the ASCP phlebotomy technician exam.
It sub-categories are physiology, patient instruction and preparation, specimen collection, handling and processing, specimen acceptability for testing, transport & storage (preservatives, time, temperature, etc.), and terminology.
Physiology
Patient Instruction and Preparation
- Sputum
- Stool collections
- Collections of Urine (e.g., 24-hour, clean-catch midstream, random)
Specimen Collection
- Chain-of-custody
- Iontophoresis (sweat chloride)
- Throat swabs
- Breath testing (lactose, H. pylori, etc)
- Nasopharyngeal swabs
Handling and Processing
- Storage and transport (preservatives, temperature, and time)
- Testing specimen acceptability
- Specimen varieties and correlation with tests conducted ( buccal swabs, sputum, body fluids, semen, sweat, nasopharyngeal, stool, breath, CSF, urine, etc)
Terminology
Laboratory Operation: ASCP Phlebotomy Exam Content Guidelines
Lab operation presents 15-20% of questions for the PBT ASCP exam.
The main sub-topics of the lab operation that you must cover are quality assurance, quality improvement, proficiency testing & competency assessment, interpersonal relations, professional ethics, laboratory regulations, and safety regulations.
Quality Assurance
- It emphasizes techniques and equipment.
Quality Improvement
- Incident report/investigation
- Specimen errors,
- Turnaround times
Proficiency Testing & Competency Assessment
Interpersonal Relations
- It is related to connections, including the relationship with lab staff and other healthcare professionals.
Professional Ethics
- Standard of care
- Types of consent
- Patient confidentiality
- Negligence
- Malpractice
Laboratory Regulations
- Coding/billing (test complexity, ICD coding, ABN, etc)
- Accreditation (e.g., CAP)
- Collection of specimens (TJC, CLSI)
- Shipping of specimens (Category A & B, DOT, IATA)
Safety Regulations (NFPA, OSHA)
- Chemical safety techniques (SDS, health hazards, chemical labeling, etc)
- Infection control: Patient isolation, Sharps safety, Personal protective equipment (PPE), Signs and labels, Standard precautions, transmission routes including vectors and reservoirs, hand hygiene, infection control, disinfection and decontamination, etc.
- Radiation safety approaches (labeling, etc)
- Practices of fire safety (classes of fire, response protocols, fire safety equipment, etc)
Terminology
For MLA ASCP Exam Content, check this Article?
FAQs for ASCP Phlebotomy Exam Content Guidelines
Is covering all ASCP Phlebotomy Exam Content Guidelines necessary?
Yes, of course, the ASCP PBT is an MCQ exam, so you cannot skip even a little piece of information in the ASCP phlebotomy exam content guidelines.
How do I know which content area is most important for the PBT ASCP exam?
The ASCP phlebotomy exam content guidelines also show the question percentage of each subject, You can imagine the importance of the content area with its question percentage.
How long does it take to cover the PBT ASCP exam?
The BOC offers 2 hours to cover the PBT ASCP exam (80 questions).
Abdelhalim Elshawadfy is an ASCP certified Medical Laboratory Scientist (MLS ASCP), Specialist in Microbiology (SM ASCP), and Molecular Biology Technologist (MB ASCP) with a distinguished career marked by expertise, continuous learning, and a commitment to elevating the standards of clinical laboratory science. As an ASCP Certification Expert and American Board Certification Expert, Abdelhalim Elshawadfy continues to make invaluable contributions to the field, leaving a lasting impact on the medical community.
Resources: ASCP BOC.