National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Science (NAACLS) Considerations

Volume 38 Number 2 | April 2024

How Will the Online Program Meet NAACLS Accreditation Standards?

Starting an Online Medical Laboratory Science Education Program Part Five

Elizabeth A. Gockel-Blessing, PhD, MLS(ASCP)^CM
Amanda Reed, MAE, MLS(ASCP)^CM

We have been absent for a few editions, but we are back and ready to share additional information and lessons learned from starting our own online medical laboratory science (MLS) program. To recap, we previously discussed the critical aspects of IT infrastructure that were needed during the early stages of establishing an online MLS program, such as assessing the compatibility of the course management system (CMS) for the program. We examined IT bandwidth in Admissions and Registrar Offices, focusing on functions, processes, and procedures. We addressed the challenges related to involving current faculty in the online program, discussing issues such as limited time and faculty concerns about sharing course materials. Finally, we highlighted the opportunity presented by the online program’s development to review and refine the curriculum, covering aspects like outcomes, mapping, taxonomy, consistency between in-seat and online versions, and assessment. Here, we tackle issues surrounding MLS program accreditation.

MLS programs must be accredited for their graduates to take the American Society for Clinical Pathology (ASCP) Board of Certification (BOC) exam. The accrediting body for medical laboratory science programs is the National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Science (NAACLS).

In this article, we examine the NAACLS standards and their relevance to starting an online MLS program delivery option. For the purposes of this article, the terminology used to identify the online program is “online delivery option.” Strategically selected components of each accreditation standard are presented in this article. In instances when no special steps were taken for the online delivery option to meet the standard, “none” is entered in the corresponding column of each table. When steps needed to be taken, a brief description of them appears in the corresponding column of the tables. Some of the steps taken are presented in future tense, as they have not been done. It is important to note that the terms clinical practicum (Standard I) and student (clinical) experience (Standard V) are used interchangeably in this document.

Standard I: Sponsorship

This standard is designed to identify the program sponsoring institution. We are a university-based program at an accredited institution of higher learning. Sponsorship includes a comprehensive list of required responsibilities ranging from oversite of documents and processes as outlined in Table 1.

Table 1: Standard I – Sponsorship

IA: Sponsoring Institution

Identification of the sponsor.

None [Saint Louis University is the Sponsor of the MLS Program]

ID1: Responsibilities of the Sponsor

Program oversite to include curriculum, faculty, documentation, safety, awarding of degrees.

None

ID2: Responsibilities of the Sponsor

Establishing clinical education requirements.

None

ID3: Responsibilities of the Sponsor

Maintaining communication between sponsor and affiliate.

None

ID4: Responsibilities of the Sponsor

Securing clinical practicum sites.

Additional clinical sites would need to be established in locations near where the online students live

ID5: Responsibilities of the Sponsor

Develop and maintain formal clinical affiliation agreements.

New formal clinical affiliation agreements would need to be developed and implemented with new clinical partners that are in alignment with the regulations governing a State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA)*

*SARA is an agreement between two states that allows a postsecondary institution in one state to provide education via distance education or correspondence courses to students in another state. One goal of implementing SARA is to establish comparable national standards for offering education experiences in states other than where the institution is located.

Standard II: Assessment and Continuous Quality Improvement

Systematic assessment of the program and outcomes measures is the focus of Standard II (Table 2). Examples of these program outcome measures are certification exam results, graduation rates, placement rates, and attrition rates. This standard requires that these data be regularly analyzed and used to inform program decisions as part of the continuous improvement of the program.

Table 2: Assessment and Continuous Quality Improvement

IIA: Systematic Assessment

Documented plan for continuous and systematic assessment of the effectiveness of the program.

None

IIB/C: Outcome measures/Program Assessment and Modification

Annual documentation and analysis. For use in program assessment and continuous quality improvement of the program.

None

Standard III: Resources

Standard III evaluates the sponsor’s ability to adequately support all aspects of the program. Such support is offered through monetary funding, classroom and student laboratory space, supplies, and faculty and staff (Table 3). A full-time online program manager was hired to provide clinical and administrative support for students and faculty throughout the online MLS Program. Duties of this position span the breadth of the program with emphasis on coordinating student clinical site placement and site visits; making admission decisions and reviewing of prerequisites; reviewing online student academic and clinical progressions; and communicating with all needed academic support offices, such as Registrar’s Office, ITS, financial aid, as well as policy/regulatory individuals.

Table 3: Resources

IIIA/B/C: General/Personnel/Physical Resources

There must be sufficient resources for continued operation of the program.

Student lab space, supplies, and adjunct faculty (in-person instructors, online adjunct instructors) for didactic and online lab courses were secured.

Standard IV: Students – Publications and Disclosures

This standard requires that prospective and enrolled students be informed of important program information, such as admission requirements, program outcomes, and a list of clinical practicum sites. Program policies and procedures must be provided and easily accessible. Table 4 summarizes the components that fall into this standard.

Table 4: Students – Publications and Disclosures

IVA: Publications and Disclosures

Program information must be defined, published, and readily available to prospective and enrolled students.

Added information pertinent to the online program to existing materials.

IVB: Student Records

The program must maintain student records in accordance with governmental or sponsoring institution regulations.

None

IVC: Health and Safety

Ensuring student health and safety via educational activities and training.

None

Standard V: Operational Policies

The sponsoring institution must have policies and procedures in place that protect the student from unfair or discriminatory practices (Table 5). Of note, students cannot “be substituted for regular staff during their student (clinical) experiences” (NAACLS, pg. 3), and graduation is not contingent upon passing the national certification exam (NAACLS, pg. 7). In addition, it ensures there are contingencies in place should the program unexpectedly close (NAACLS, pg. 7).

Table 5: Operational Policies

VA: Operational Policies

Ensuring fair and non-discriminatory practices from recruitment to graduation.

None

Standard VI: Administrative: Maintaining Accreditation

This standard requires programs to submit “required documentation by NAACLS by the established deadline” (NAACLS, pg. 7). Such documents include, but are not limited to, Self-Study Reports, Applications for Continuing Accreditation, and required Progress Reports, Interim Report, and Action Plans. Programs are also required to pay an annual accreditation fee.

Table 6: Administrative: Maintaining Accreditation

VI: Administrative: Maintaining Accreditation

Programs must adhere to the processes and procedures dictated by NAACLS to keep program accreditation.

None

Standard VII: MLS Program Administration

The qualifications and responsibilities of the program director, didactic faculty, and clinical liaisons are a focus of this standard. Another focus of this standard states that programs are required to assemble an advisory committee that meets on a regular basis with the opportunity to review and provide input as it relates to the program (Table 7).

Table 7: MLS Program Administration

VIIA/B/C: MLS Personnel Qualifications and Responsibilities

Mandates that program director, clinical liaisons have the education, experience, and certification required to hold their positions.

None

VIID: Advisory Committee

Requires the establishment of advisory committee and scheduling of regular meetings in which members have input into the program/curriculum.

None

Standard VIII: MLS Curriculum Requirements

Programs must require that students have completed appropriate prerequisite coursework that allows them to be successful in their MLS courses. MLS program curriculum is required to incorporate scientific concepts, technical skills, professionalism, regulations, communication skills, principles of laboratory administration and supervision, educational methodologies for training and education purposes, and clinical study design (Table 8). Of note is the emphasis on the pre-analytical, analytical, and post-analytical components of laboratory testing.

Table 8: MLS Curriculum Requirements

VIII: Curriculum Requirements

Ensuring program covers required instructional areas, provides properly developed and sequenced learning experiences, and provides effective evaluations of student learning and course design.

None

Final Thoughts

Performing this exercise made us realize that while we initially termed the online option as the “online program,” in essence we have one program. The difference between in-seat and online is the delivery method. Hence, the term “delivery method” replaced “program” in this article. This realization allowed us to review the standards from the standpoint of one program. We were fortunate in this way because, as the tables above show, very minimal adjustments were made or would need to be made for the online delivery option to meet each accreditation standard. When we reached out to NAACLS to let them know of our plans to design and implement an online delivery option, we were pleasantly surprised that all we needed to do from a paperwork perspective was to indicate our intentions in the next required annual NAACLS report. Wow! That was easy!

Reference

NAACLS Standard for Accredited Programs, last adopted 09/2023. Assessed online 01/08/2028. https://naacls.org/NAACLS/media/Documents/2012Standards.pdf

Elizabeth A. Gockel-Blessing is Associate Professor, Medical Laboratory Science Associate Dean for Student and Academic Affairs at Doisy College of Health Sciences at St. Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri.

Amanda Reed is Assistant Professor/MLS Program Director at St. Louis University in St. Louis, Missouri.

Read additional articles in this series:

• Considering Starting an Online Medical Laboratory Science Education Program? Part One
• Starting an Online MLS Education Program: IT Infrastructure
• Starting an Online MLS Education Program: IT Infrastructure Part 2
• Curriculum Review: Do We Have To?
• Faculty Buy In: How Do We Get It?