Considering Biomedicine? What To Expect When Working In A Biomedical Lab

Biomedical laboratories are an important part of a wide range of facilities. They’re commonly found in hospitals, clinics, community-based healthcare centers, and other healthcare businesses.

Biomedical labs, sometimes called medical or clinic labs, are used to test, analyze, and research different kinds of samples. A lab scientist or assistant might work on live cell cultures and micro-organisms to learn more about a particular field of science or medicine.

Depending on where the lab is situated, its functions and the type of equipment that is used might differ. For example, a biomedical lab that resides inside a hospital will test and analyze samples to help medical staff diagnose and treat patients.

Whether you’re considering a job in biomedicine or you’re just intrigued to learn more about what happens in a biomedical lab, we’re here to answer your questions in this article. Let’s go into more detail about the main duties of a biomedical lab and the kinds of equipment you will find in one.

What Are the Main Functions Of A Biomedical Lab?

Laboratories can be categorized into medical or research labs. The former focuses on supporting healthcare facilities in the diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions, and disease prevention.

The latter can focus on a wide variety of samples and subjects to learn more about different organisms and cells. A research lab can focus on basic or applied research.

There is a wide range of different specialties and tasks in a biomedical laboratory. Some general labs perform a variety of tasks, while others are specialized labs that focus on just one area of medicine or science.

In medical-based labs, the analysis of different samples is vital to ensure accurate patient diagnoses. The biomedical staff must undertake every experiment with high accuracy and precision, and they are often working under strict time constraints.

For example, a blood sample may come into the lab for analysis because doctors suspect that the patient has an infection. The lab staff will need to get an accurate white blood cell count to confirm this. Getting the wrong count could lead to an incorrect or missed diagnosis.

Diagnosing blood samples is just a small part of a biomedical lab’s duties. They may also look at cell cultures and tissue samples from various patients. Some medical labs specialize in the analysis and research of tumor cell biopsies to provide better treatments for cancer patients.

What Equipment Is Used In A Biomedical Lab?

There is a wide variety of equipment used in biomedical labs. Depending on the specialty, there might also be some specialized equipment that has very specific functions.

Every biomedical lab will have various equipment to heat or cool samples, including incubators, hydrocarbon refrigerants, and freezers. They will also have some equipment to process and analyze samples, including centrifuges, slides, microscopes, and various chemicals or dyes.

Lab staff will also use computers, software, and other forms of technology to automate some of the sample preparation and analysis processes.