Frequently Asked Questions
Continuing education is essential as MLTs assume leadership roles in the health care system. MLTs must strive to contribute to the improvement of the profession by embracing the ideals of life-long learning.
TeKnowledge.ns criteria promote professional activities, transferable skills, and lab related professional learning. Licensure and the need for TeKnowledge.ns creates an environment of accountability and uniformity for daily interactions and promotes the educational activities for professional growth.
The purpose of TeKnowledge.ns is to provide the NSCMLT members with recognition and documentation of achieving sufficient professional development to be eligible for licensing.
New NSCMLT members have 4 years to achieve their TeKnowledge.ns certificate?
New grads and new members from other provinces or internationally trained will have 4 years from their initial registration with the NSCMLT to achieve 8 Continuing Education (CE) credits toward the TeKnowledge.ns certificate. Completion of the MLT program or courses related to the certificate or degree does not count towards the required work credits.
Does NSCMLT send out a reminder that TeKnowledge.ns is expiring?
Yes, the NSCMLT office sends out an e-mail reminder @ 30 days prior to a member’s TeKnowledge.ns due date. However, it is the responsibility of the member to be aware of when their TeKnowledge.ns expires and to submit their application on time. Please ensure your email is up to date with NSCMLT to receive these notifications.
Does my TeKnowledge.ns due date change if I am on maternity leave or a leave of absence?
What are the options for retirees?
Since a TeKnowledge.ns certificate is good for 4 years it may be advantageous to renew your TeKnowledge.ns as you retire so you will have 4 years that you will maintain your eligibility to work. At all times you must hold a valid TeKnowledge.ns to be licensed as an MLT even when you work casual or part time.
How do I find out how many credits a formal course provides?
Most courses have a number of hours listed in the course description. CSMLS has a list of courses that have been assessed as well to help determine the appropriate number of applicable learning hours. Generally, 1 hour of learning equals 0.1 credit. It is the responsibility of the individual to gather this information.
Is the formula used by CSMLS to assess and calculate course hours for credits being used by the NSCMLT?
No, the NSCMLT does not have the resources to evaluate individual courses and therefore uses the hours provided with the course description.
Do credits get tallied by the person providing the assessment at NSCMLT?
No, the credits must be recorded on the application and tallied by the applicant. The NSCMLT assessor will not add up the credits or assign credit values and the application may be returned as incomplete.
What credit values for Occupational Health, Fire Safety and Safety are individual;s eligible for?
Initial training provides 0.1 credit per hour of training claimed under New Process or Procedure Training. Recertification training is 0.1 credit per hour to a maximum of 0.5 per 4 years. Code green, orange and red training is claimed here. There is a maximum of 0.5 credits for safety. This is claimed under Certification of Safety training.
What credit values are individual’s eligible for related to lab proficiency requirements such as performing CAP surveys, Q Pulse, CellaVision and answering Lorna Pearce (LP3) questions?
Proficiency testing (CAP surveys,TeK Checks, Q Pulse, CellaVision etc.) required by the employer to assess laboratory and or technologist performance is not considered continuing education as it is performed using current testing processes and considered part of your job requirements. Answering questions provided by the employer as an assessment of knowledge are also considered part of your job requirements and not valid for activity credits.
Cella Vision education sessions or Tek Checks completed for learning purposes over and above workplace proficiency requirements may be valid as Continuing Education for credit. These activities must be identified as education sessions or additional to the workplace proficiency requirements. Each activity must be accompanied by applicable documentation showing attendance at a review session or additional to workplace requirements.
How is the number of hours decided for training in an area?
Training in a new area is eligible for credits at 0.1 credit per hour as determined by the person responsible for the training. It includes only actual training time and does not include practice time. This is claimed under New Process or Procedure Training.
Do you require work credits to renew your TeKnowledge.ns certificate?
A minimum of 100 hours (0.2 credits)/4 years of work credits is required at this time.
What credit value do preceptors for student or a medical resident on clinical rotations get?
In the case where technologists are in a precepting role as part of their job, the technologist would get credit value for the preparation and initial delivery of formal training materials and documentation. The MLT gets a one time credit. – 0.1 credit/ hour of preparation and initial delivery to a maximum of 1.0 credit. If the MLT attends a preceptor course offered onsite or online - 0.1 credit/ hour can be claimed under Professional Activities.
Does vendor supply training on a new instrument count for credits?
A one-time credit value for the learning (no credits for teaching – in a train the trainer situation) 0.1 credit/ hour. There is a maximum credit value of 2 credits for all key operator training and it must be supported by vendor documentation or the description of the training session. (Most vendors will issue a certificate that indicates the # of hours of training on it for CE credit purposes). Claimed under Key Operator Training.
If a technologist is active on several committees how many TeKnowledge.ns credits can they claim?
The TeKnowledge.ns program allows those who serve on workplace professional committees, boards or regulatory bodies such as quality, safety, WHMIS, NSCMLT/CSMLS to claim TeKnowledge.ns credits. MLTs may claim 0.5 credits/ year up to a maximum of 2 credit / 4 year cycle regardless of how many committees the MLT is on. Claimed under Professional Activities.
What do we fill in for the Documentation on file for Audit field?
You are required to answer yes or no. You do not have to state what the document is. You may attach the document.
Does an attendance sheet qualify for documentation?
Yes, the attendance sheet does qualify for documentation.
What documentation do I include from online learning centres?
The print screen of the completed courses with the date of completion would suffice.
