AACC Lab Tests Online® Continuing Education Program

Lab Tests Online is AACC's premier patient education web site. Visited by more than 2 million users each month, the site is designed to help patients and caregivers learn about conditions and diseases, related lab tests, and laboratory medicine as an important part of managing their healthcare.

AACC's Lab Tests Online staff assign selected test descriptions and condition/disease articles from the Lab Tests Online web site for members to research, review, and update for ACCENT® continuing education credit. These activities are intended to help laboratory professionals gain or refresh knowledge and help them learn to communicate more effectively with patients and other laboratory clients.

AACC members, in good standing, who are clinical laboratory directors, administrators, managers, and clinical laboratory scientists. Because successful completion of the activity requires familiarity with and knowledge of U.S. and Canadian healthcare policies, practices and guidelines, participants are required to hold medical or lab-related degrees and/or certifications from U.S. or Canadian institutions or organizations.

1. Earn 4 credits or more to help you with your continuing education and fulfill requirements for licensure or certification maintenance.
2. Get recognized on AACC's premier patient education web site as an "AACC Lab Tests Online Editorial Contributor." Participants will get credit as the current reviewer of the article in the "Sources" section of the article as well as on a dedicated Acknowledgments page on the Lab Tests Online site.
3. Advance or refresh your knowledge of lab medicine and how to communicate more effectively with patients and other laboratory clients.

1. After reading through the test or condition article, researching the topic for the latest information, and revising the article according to the facts found, the participants should be able to describe the test or condition, how and when the test(s) is used, and what results indicate as well as explain the latest trends, guidelines, and current thinking for the particular area of testing or condition. 
2. In editing the article and developing text geared toward the lay public and health professionals other than laboratorians, the participants should be able to communicate more effectively about laboratory topics to their laboratory customers and other various stakeholders.

Level of instruction: Articles for review are categorized as either basic or intermediate/advanced.

Topic categories: Articles are divided among various laboratory areas, such as clinical chemistry, hematology, infectious diseases, molecular pathology, and transfusion medicine. There may be some overlap with some articles.

Faculty member: Katie Schaeffer, Senior Editor, Lab Tests Online

Program schedule: Once a participant receives an assignment, it is expected that the research and article review will be completed within three weeks.

Deadline for Registering for Program and Obtaining Continuing Education Credit: November 30, 2018

To obtain continuing education credit for this activity, follow these steps:

1. Complete the participant form for a Lab Tests Online article to review. (Your contact information will be kept confidential and will not be made available to any outside organizations). 
2. Once you have submitted your form, you will receive via your email address the article as a Microsoft Word document with instructions on how to complete the review. The article may be a lab test description or a condition/disease.
3. Research and review should be completed within 3 weeks of receiving the Word document. After you complete the required research and review, return the document to [email protected] with the subject line: CE Activity Submission.
4. AACC staff editors will review the document and verify that the review and updates are complete. After verification, you will be recognized as an "AACC Lab Tests Online Editorial Contributor" and will be recorded as the 2017 reviewer of the article in the list of "Sources" for the article. 
5. You will receive a link via email to complete the activity online evaluation form. Complete the evaluation form and print your Verification of Participation certificate. You may also send an electronic copy of your certificate to your email address or save it to your computer.
6. This process can be repeated once per month until the deadline (November 30, 2018) by reviewing additional articles for the continuing education credit desired. You must, however, complete one article review before registering for another.

AACC Continuing Education Activity

AACC offers ACCENT® credit to laboratory professionals to document their continuing education and fulfill requirements for licensure or certification. AACC is an approved provider of continuing education for laboratory professionals in, but not limited to, the states of California, Florida, Louisiana, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Rhode Island, and West Virginia. ACCENT® credit is also recognized by several organizations: AAB, ABCC, ACS, AMT, ASCLS, ASCP, ASM, CAP, IFCC, and NRCC.

AACC designates this activity for a maximum of 4.0 ACCENT® credit hours towards the AACC Clinical Chemist's Recognition Award.

Questions about this program may be directed to [email protected].

General questions about obtaining continuing education credit? Contact the AACC Education Coordinator at [email protected].