Find out the top 10 core skills you need to master as a cytology technical specialist and what hard skills you need to know to succeed in this job.

A Cytology Technical Specialist assists in the diagnosis of diseases by preparing slides containing cell samples and analyzing them to discover if they have any anomalies. He/she usually helps a cytotechnologist in analyzing human cells to detect if there are diseases like cancer.

Other associated duties include ensuring that the right specimens are received for testing abnormalities, virus, bacteria and other indicators of diseases; staining samples; preparing laboratory equipment; recording patients information; ensure safety and anti-contamination procedures are followed to protect the samples and technicians; provide technical expertise; take part in performance improvement activities and quality assurance programs in the laboratory as well as perform complex diagnostic testing.

Core Skills Required to be a Cytology Technical Specialist

Core skills describe a set of non-technical abilities, knowledge, and understanding that form the basis for successful participation in the workplace. Core skills enable employees to efficiently and professionally navigate the world of work and interact with others, as well as adapt and think critically to solve problems.

Core skills are often tagged onto job descriptions to find or attract employees with specific essential core values that enable the company to remain competitive, build relationships, and improve productivity.

A cytology technical specialist should master the following 10 core skills to fulfill her job properly.

Safety at work:

Safety is being protected from hurt or other non-desirable outcomes that may tend to overrule a situation and cause damages of different kinds.

A Cytology Technical Specialist must learn to keep the organization safe from different risks by developing a high sense of alertness that detects danger from afar and stops it before it causes risk, danger or injury in the organization.

Participative Management:

Participative Management is also known as employee involvement is the participation of all stakeholders at all levels of the organization in the investigation of problems, development of strategies and implementation of solutions.

A Cytology Technical Specialist should include the participative management in the enterprise to create open and honest communication, freedom and transparency solicit survey feedback and form self-managed teams that are easy to work with.

Supervisory Skills:

Supervisory Skills is the ability to lead and manage people effectively in a difficult and challenging atmosphere in the day to day life.

A Cytology Technical Specialist must cultivate, develop and refine management and supervisory skills to strengthen the present as well as build the future of the business by becoming competent in such roles like problem-solving, communication, managing people, time management, leadership, planning, etc.

Empathy:

Empathy is the understanding of another person's condition from their perspective by placing yourself in their shoes and feeling what they are feeling.

A Cytology Technical Specialist ought to practice empathy with his staff by learning to be a good listener and understanding what his employees are going through and choosing to feel it with them through the use of imagination and accommodate them.

Conceptual Thinking:

Conceptual Thinking is the ability to recognize a situation or problem by identifying patterns or connections while addressing the underlying issues.

A Cytology Technical Specialist must be a conceptual thinker who has a keen understanding of why things have to be done the way they are; he has to think at an abstract level and apply his insights to the situation across all facets to compete in the diverse and growing economy.

Persistence:

Persistence is the refusal to give up or let go of a firm or obstinate continuous course of action despite difficulties or opposition that you may face.

A Cytology Technical Specialist should strongly emphasize the need for persistence as the fundamental difference between a successful outcome and a failed one while developing this important quality in each creating happy employees and business.

Intercultural Competence:

Intercultural Competence is the knowledge and skills to successfully interact with people from other ethnic, religious, cultural, national and geographic groups.

A Cytology Technical Specialist should have a high degree of intercultural competence that enables him to have successful interactions with people from different groups as well as train his employees to be sensitive to the cultural differences and be willing to modify their behavior as a sign of respect for each other.

Research:

Research is the ability to stay updated on the latest trends in different fields as per your concern or the concern of your company or business.

A Cytology Technical Specialist ought to stay up to date on the latest trends in hiring, leading, retention, technology and much more by using the newest research methods that allow him to make better decisions and improve productivity.

Computer Skills:

Computer Skills are the necessary computer working skills that each employee need to have while seeking to get admitted into the professional world.

A Cytology Technical Specialist ought to be technologically oriented and hire employees with strong computer skills because they fare better in the job market than their tech-challenged counterparts bringing a high level of quality employees in the job seeking category.

Mechanical Skills:

Mechanical Skills are the abilities to solve problems that arise in the workplace, although it may vary from one company to another.

A Cytology Technical Specialist must be well equipped with technical skills to handle any underlying mechanical problem that may arise from wrong scheduling to meeting unique customer needs, budget, legal constraints, environmental and social issues, technology changes and any other management requirements.

Hard Skills Required to be a Cytology Technical Specialist

Hard skills are job-specific skill sets, or expertise, that are teachable and whose presence can be tested through exams. While core skills are more difficult to quantify and less tangible, hard skills are quantifiable and more defined.

Hard skills are usually listed on an applicant's resume to help recruiters know the applicant's qualifications for the applied position. A recruiter, therefore, needs to review the applicant's resume and education to find out if he/she has the knowledge necessary to get the job done.

A cytology technical specialist should have a good command of the following hard skills to succeed in her job.

Cytology Technical Specialist: Hard skills list

Ancillary Testing and Related Technologies
Analytical
Analyzing cells
Anatomic Pathology
Bacteriology Theory
Biology
Biological Testing Instruments
Biotechnical Theory
Chemistry
Chemistry Theory
Clinical Data
Clinical Research
Clinical Sterilizing Techniques
Computer literacy
Computer-assisted Screening
Cytology
Cytological Procedures/Technologies
Diagnostic
Diagnostic methods, equipment, and technology
Evaluating (evaluating the growing volume of nongynecologic and fine-needle aspiration specimens)
Geometry
Health occupations/medical professions education
Healthcare
Histology
Histologic
Human Tissue
Laboratory Equipment Usage
Laboratory Management
Laboratory Medicine
Laboratory Operations
Laboratory Safety
Laboratory Techniques
Mathematics
Medical Diagnosis Machines and Instruments
Medical Laboratory Specimens (Handle and Store)
Microscopic
Microscopic Interpretation
Microbiology Procedures
Morphology
Molecular Diagnostics
Molecular Genetics
Pathology
Physics
Physical Science
Safety Inspections in Health Care Setting
Screening and Interpretation
Science
Scientific Method
Specimen Collection and Preparation
Statistics
Writing

Related Articles