Clinical pathology

Clinical pathology (US, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, Portugal, Brazil, Italy, Japan, Peru), Laboratory Medicine (Austria, Germany, Romania, Poland, Eastern Europe), Clinical analysis (Spain) or Clinical/Medical Biology (France, Belgium, Netherlands, North and West Africa...), is a medical specialty that is concerned with the diagnosis of disease based on the laboratory analysis of bodily fluids, such as blood, urine, and tissue homogenates or extracts using the tools of chemistry, microbiology, hematology and molecular pathology. This specialty requires a medical residency. Clinical pathology (US, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, Portugal, Brazil, Italy, Japan, Peru), Laboratory Medicine (Austria, Germany, Romania, Poland, Eastern Europe), Clinical analysis (Spain) or Clinical/Medical Biology (France, Belgium, Netherlands, North and West Africa...), is a medical specialty that is concerned with the diagnosis of disease based on the laboratory analysis of bodily fluids, such as blood, urine, and tissue homogenates or extracts using the tools of chemistry, microbiology, hematology and molecular pathology. This specialty requires a medical residency. The American Board of Pathology certifies clinical pathologists, and recognizes the following secondary specialties of clinical pathology: In some countries other sub specialities fall under certified Clinical Biologists responsibility: Clinical pathologists are often medical doctors.In some countries in South-America, Europe, Africa or Asia, this specialty can be practiced by non-physicians, such as Ph.D or Pharm.D after a variable number of years of residency. Clinical pathologists work in close collaboration with clinical scientists (clinical biochemists, clinical microbiologists, etc.), medical technologists, hospital administrators, and referring physicians to ensure the accuracy and optimal utilization of laboratory testing. Clinical pathology is one of the two major divisions of pathology, the other being anatomical pathology. Often, pathologists practice both anatomical and clinical pathology, a combination sometimes known as general pathology. Similar specialties exist in veterinary pathology. Clinical pathology is itself divided into subspecialties, the main ones being clinical chemistry, clinical hematology/blood banking, hematopathology and clinical microbiology and emerging subspecialties such as molecular diagnostics and proteomics. Many areas of clinical pathology overlap with anatomic pathology. Both can serve as medical directors of CLIA certified laboratories. Under the CLIA law, only the US Department of Health and Human Services approved Board Certified Ph.D., D Sc, or MD and DO can perform the duties of a Medical or Clinical Laboratory Director. This overlap includes immunoassays, flow cytometry, microbiology and cytogenetics and any assay done on tissue. Overlap between anatomic and clinical pathology is expanding to molecular diagnostics and proteomics as we move towards making the best use of new technologies for personalized medicine. Recently, EFLM has chosen the name of 'Specialists in Laboratory Medicine' to define all European Clinical pathologists, regardless of their training (M.D, Ph.D or Pharm.D). In France, Clinical Pathology is called Medical Biology ('Biologie médicale') and is practiced by both M.D.s and Pharm.Ds. The residency lasts four years. Specialists in this discipline are called 'Biologiste médical' which literally translates as Clinical Biologist rather than 'Clinical pathologist'.