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Program facts 
Prepare for immediate entry into a phlebotomy career with this 8-credit-hour certificate
program, which will teach you the techniques, procedures and safety precautions of
drawing blood from patients or donors for diagnostic testing. After graduating from
this program, you’ll be ready to begin a phlebotomist career in a wide variety of
health care settings such as hospitals, hospital laboratories, physician offices,
clinics, blood banks, commercial laboratories or other similar facilities.
Training consists of a mixture of lectures, on-site student laboratories and a clinical
internship at a local health care facility. Other focus areas of study include ethical
and legal responsibilities, safe practices and effective communication skills.
Courses for this program are offered at Harper's main campus in Palatine, as well as the Learning and Career Center (LCC) in Prospect Heights.
This 8 credit-hour certificate program consists of lectures, student laboratories and a clinical internship arranged in a local health care facility. This certificate is useful for a number of health care professionals interested in developing the skills and techniques involved in the collection of blood from patients or donors for diagnostic testing. In addition, ethical and legal responsibilities, effective communication skills and safe practices are studied. Phlebotomists are employed in hospitals, hospital laboratories, physician offices, clinics, blood banks, commercial laboratories, or similar facilities. Phlebotomy has become a fast-growing health occupation and is considered a profession with a standardized educational curriculum and accepted routes for national certification. Note: All students wishing to sit for the national certification exam must have earned a High School Diploma or equivalency. Proof of high school graduation or GED is required before registering for PHB 102.
| Number | Course Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required | ||
| HSC 112 | Medical Terminology | 2 |
Description: Emphasizes the origin and the basic structure of medical words, including prefixes, suffixes, word roots, combining forms and plurals. Offers pronunciation, spelling, and definition of medical terms based on the body systems approach. Emphasis on rendering a professional vocabulary required for work in the health care field. Lecture Hours: 1 Lab Hours: 2 Contact Hours: 3 Class Schedule: Summer 2025 | Fall 2025 | ||
| PHB 101 | Phlebotomy Principles and Practice | 4 |
Description: Includes the role of the phlebotomist, infection control and safety in the workplace; anatomy and physiology appropriate to the practice of phlebotomy, blood collection equipment and blood collection procedures; including venipuncture, skin puncture, collection of certain body fluids, specimen transport and storage requirements, communication skills, quality assurance and professionalism. The laboratory component focuses on the development of skills in performing phlebotomy procedures. Students who wish to become certified as phlebotomy technicians must complete this course and also complete PHB 102 with a grade of C or better. Prerequisite: Prior or concurrent enrollment in HSC 112 with a grade of C or better. Lecture Hours: 3 Lab Hours: 3 Contact Hours: 6 Class Schedule: Summer 2025 | Fall 2025 | ||
| PHB 102 | Phlebotomy Internship | 2 |
Description: Consists of 120 clinical hours of supervised phlebotomy practice at a local health care facility. The internship rotation schedule is arranged on an individual basis. Special registration permit for registering for the internship is required. NOTE: Possession of a current Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) for the Health Care Provider certification card and completion of the State of Illinois criminal background check, drug screen and the program's health requirements are required prior to placement in the internship. All students wishing to sit for the national certification exam must have earned a high school diploma or equivalency. Proof of high school graduation or GED is required before registering for PHB 102. Prerequisite: HSC 112 and PHB 101 with grades of C or better. Lecture Hours: 1 Lab Hours: 8 Contact Hours: 9 Class Schedule: Summer 2025 | Fall 2025 | ||
| Elective for Students in the Medical Industry Not Seeking a Phlebotomy Certificate | ||
| PHB 103 | Phlebotomy for Health Care Providers | |
Description: Presents students with an overview of basic concepts of infection control and safety in the workplace, anatomy, and physiology appropriate to the practice of phlebotomy, blood collection equipment and blood collection procedures, including venipuncture, skin puncture and specimen processing. Focuses on laboratory development of hands-on skills designed for health care provider students that are not seeking phlebotomy certification or clinical placement. This course is not used in the phlebotomy program accreditation. Prerequisites: Coordinator approval needed to register for this course. Student must be 18 years of age and have a minimum of 1 year of health care field experience and/or be registered in a health career program. Lecture Hours: 1 Lab Hours: 4 Contact Hours: 5 Class Schedule: Summer 2025 | Fall 2025 | ||
| Total Hours | 8 | |
For more information about starting your career in phlebotomy, contact Admission Outreach at 847.925.6700 or submit a request information form. You can also apply online.
Please note: This program is not financial aid eligible.