Phlebotomy Training In Bakersfield Ca

Kern County Phlebotomy Training Opportunities

Phlebotomists in Kern County complete either on-the-job training, cross-train from another health care profession that require blood drawing skills, or formal phlebotomy training in Bakersfield Ca. However, new regulations in the State of California were adopted and signed into law stating that all prospective phlebotomists must:

• Either possess a GED or High School Diploma
• Complete 40 hours of didactic instruction
• Log 40 hours of clinical work
• Successfully perform 10 skin punctures and 50 venipunctures 

Work Environment

Typical work environments for phlebotomists include home health services, individual patient's homes, public health clinics, pharmaceutical companies, blood banks, for-profit laboratories, research institutions, physician's offices, hospitals, prisons, and assisted living facilities. Phlebotomists routinely work with nurses and physicians, lab technicians, and ancillary staff members. They deal with doctors and nurses, laboratory technicians, and support workers in various locations. Needless to say, on their rounds they will deal with both sick and healthy patients, from newborns to senior citizens.

Work Hours

Phlebotomists usually work regular office hours (Mo-Fr 8 AM to 5 PM). Sometimes they may have to work on weekends. Phlebotomists need to have an up-to-date First Aid Certificate, and they need to have a driver's licence if they are required to travel to collect samples.

Salary

According to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, research indicates that salaries reports that earnings are wildly varied, and levels of pay are mainly governed by qualifications and experience. Once established, competent phlebotomists who have maintained a stellar reputation are able to stay at the top of the pay scale. Currently the average salary is $32,000 - $46,000 for phlebotomists.

Educational Requirements

Students with an interest in attending a vocational program specializing in phlebotomy certification typically will need to have their GED, H.S. Diploma, or the equivalent. Although many phlebotomists are trained on the job or transition over from other health careers, in Kern County, there are 5 approved programs at technical/vocational schools that can be completed in less than one year.

Bakersfield Community College offers a One Semester phlebotomy certification program.

Skills Refinement

As with so many jobs learning does not end upon graduation. Since this is a hands-on profession, skills that were taught in the classroom are refined on the job. As the number of blood draws increases, the more confidence is gained, and the better the blood drawing techniques become.

Professional Continuing Education

In addition to taking continuing education courses through web sites or professional magazines phlebotomists can attend professional continuing education courses and participate in workshops often offered at local hospitals to keep their knowledge up to date and maintain their credentials.

10 Tips From A Student Nutritionist In California

Keeping close to nature in the foods we choose allows us to maximize our health potential; we feel better, and live longer with less risk if a chronic disease.  Eating pure and whole foods will strengthen the entire body.  Make the following changes slowly, to ensure that they are incorporated as part of a permanent lifestyle change. For students researching how to become a nutritionist in California, the following 10 guidelines are becoming increasingly acceptable by mainstream Acend Registered Dietitians:

1.  Eat more plant based proteins: soy milk, tofu, dried beans and legumes (chick peas, black eyes peas, kidney beans, split pea), nuts & seeds and their butters, sprouted breads and bagels, quiona, splet, wheat berries, millet and other high protein grains, soy protein powder. When you do eat meat, choose lean cuts of meat and boil, bake, roast or steam.
2. Eliminate hydrogenated and trans fats from your diet. Check all labels carefully as they are in many packaged, frozen and prepared foods. Instead of margarine use organic butter or ghee (clarified butter, a very clean version of butter). Make your own salad dressings with olive oil. Cook with canola or macadamia nut oil. Sprinkle flax seeds in soups hot cereal. Foods with good fats in them include: avocado, nuts & seeds, tuna, salmon cod, sardines and trout.
3. Drink plenty of clean water; either bottled or filtered. Follow manufacture's directions for changing filters, dirty filters give dirty water. Read more about clean water.
4. Buy organic produce and try to eat 5-10 servings per day. When cooking vegetables lightly steam or stir fry with canola oil. Invest in a juicer and juice fruits and vegetables for a nutrient dense snack. Limit fruit intake (1-3 servings/day) and focus on vegetables. If you feel like your diet is lacking in fruits and vegetables take a supplement rich in carotenoids, or a xanthone rich juice.
5. When you eat diary, meat, or poultry, buy organic, hormone free, no antibiotics.
6. Reduce the intake of sugar in your diet. Try using the following to replace sugar while cooking- honey, raw sugar, pure maple syrup, pureed apple juice concentrate, barley malt syrup, pureed fruits. Read labels and note hidden sugars: sucrose, glucose, maltose, lactose, fructose, and corn syrup. Experiment with stevia in your cooking. Stevia is a herbal, no calorie natural sweetener and flavor enhancer.
7. Ensure adequate fiber intake everyday by eating high fiber foods: whole grains, fresh produce, brown rice, oatmeal,  beans and legumes. Take a fiber supplement if necessary. Add fiber slowly to the diet. Ensure adequate water intake to prevent constipation. Take fiber supplements separate from other supplements as it will interfere with other supplements.
8. Ensure adequate calcium intake through foods or a calcium supplement. High calcium foods are spinach, kale, collards, seaweeds, low fat and hormone free diary products, soy milk. Take a calcium and magnesium supplement; they work together synergistically. Vitamin D is needed to metabolize calcium. Ensure Vitamin D intake, through supplementation, exposure to sunlight, Vitamin D fortified milks and cereals, and salmon.
9. Processed and packaged foods contain many additives, artificial coloring and flavors, and preservatives such as nitrates and MSG. Avoid these foods as much as possible.
10. Take a food based multi-vitamin/mineral complex everyday. Men, children and post-menopausal women should take a multi-vitamin/mineral complex without iron. Women of childbearing age should take a multivitamin/mineral complex with iron. 

Probiotics: Strengthening the Immune System Against Infections

These friendly bacteria help fight microorganisms that can harm us

Immune Defense

In the early 1900s the Russian immunologist Elie Metchnikoff theorized that taking yogurt with lactic-acid producing microorganisms throughout life could be the primary factor explaining the difference in life expectancy among various ethnic groups.

In a study published in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemistry (JAC), researchers explain the idea that bacteria in fermented products help to balance out unhealthy microorganisms. This helps the normal human microflora to continue to act as a strong barrier against illness-causing microorganisms from both internal and external sources.

Every day people around the world come into contact with millions of microorganisms that can cause infections. Thanks to the human immune system we’re normally able to successfully battle these infections. The immune system is a network consisting of cells, tissues and organs. White blood cells or leukocytes proactively destroy the microorganisms that cause disease or infections.

The two basic types of leukocytes are phagocytes, which destroy infections, and lymphocytes, which help your body to recognize organisms you’ve been exposed to previously and to destroy them. Lymphocytes are the cells that produce the antibodies, which continue to reside in your body and make you immune to a particular disease or infection.

According to the JAC study, probiotics play several roles in boosting the immune system and preventing or treating infections, beyond increasing the amount of healthy bacteria. Probiotics limit the colonization or multiplication of disease-causing bacteria. They also produce antimicrobial substances such as bacteriocins, organic acids and peptides.

The study also indicates that some strains of bacteria such as Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) have adjuvant-like effects. Basically this means that they make the immune system respond more effectively to infections.

Studies show that probiotics can prevent or treat infections in the gastrointestinal tract such as ulcers and viral gastroenteritis (or stomach flu). Other research shows that LGG and Saccharomyces boulardii are also very effective in treating children with diarrhea caused by rotavirus. Lactobacillus GG is also an effective treatment for diarrhea caused by antibiotic use.

Another study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition indicated that taking the probiotics L. rhamnosus GR-1 and L. fermentum RC-14, which exist in the intestine and vagina, orally can help to treat infections of the urogenital tract, and keep it healthy.

The most common species of probiotics used in foods and supplements are Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium, or Streptococcus thermophilus. However, in many cases the probiotics in food have been killed. When you’re choosing probiotics to boost your immune system and fight infections, look for those with “live bacteria.”

Sources:

Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (2002) 50, 625-627. Probiotics in human infections
Å. Sullivan and C. E. Nord.
http://jac.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/50/5/625#DKF194C6

American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 73, No. 2, 437S-443s, February 2001 Probiotic agents to protect the urogenital tract against infection. Gregor Reid.
http://jac.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/50/5/625#DKF194C6

Nutritional Coaching

nu·tri·tion / n(y)o͞oˈtriSHən/ Noun:   The process of providing or obtaining the food necessary for health and growth. Food; nourishment.

Everything you put in your mouth has a benefit or a consequence. When we eat nutrient-dense, properly prepared whole foods our bodies thrive. When we eat processed, chemically concocted foods, our bodies suffer. Our bodies get confused by all of the weird, unnatural, hard to pronounce “ingredients” we eat on a daily basis. Your body does its best to adapt, but eventually it will protest by giving you all sorts of problems and symptoms that look like this:

• ALLERGIES
• ECZEMA
• SINUS INFECTIONS
• FATIGUE
• SLEEP DISORDERS
• PSORIASIS
• MIGRAINES
• ANXIETY
• MUSCLE CRAMPING
• ACNE
• ACHY JOINTS
• HEMORRHOIDS
• BLOATING and GAS
• DIARRHEA
• CONSTIPATION
• MENTAL SLUGGISHNESS
• DIFFICULTY LOSING WEIGHT
• REPRODUCTIVE ISSUES
• HORMONAL IMBALANCE
• MENSTRUAL DISORDERS
• MOOD SWINGS
• DEPRESSION
• TEETH CLENCHING
• DARK CIRCLES
• HEARTBURN
• FOOD CRAVINGS
• DRY SKIN
• DEPRESSION
• DECREASED LIBIDO
• ASTHMA…. 

just to name a few.

Make the connection between food and health.

A Nutritional Coach evaluates your health profile to find what macro and micro nutrient deficiencies may be contributing to your health issues. The uniqueness or “bio-individuality” of each person means that there is no one-size-fits-all nutritional plan. A Nutritional Coach will work with you to create a personal protocol to fit your particular needs and goals. Getting the appropriate nutrients transported effectively throughout your body means better health and overall wellness. To consider if Nutritional Coaching is a good fit for you, Google "Nutritional Coach", and make sure you read their reviews, check their bona-fides, and consider setting up an appointment.

How To Become A Nutritionist | Dietitian Definition

A Registered Dietitian: The Nutrition Expert

A registered dietitian is a food and nutrition expert who has met the minimum academic and professional requirements enabling an individual to possess the credential "RD." As members of the health care team, RDs provide an essential component of medical care—medical nutrition therapy (MNT).

Medical Nutrition Therapy

MNT is the assessment of the nutrition status of a client followed by therapy, ranging from diet modification to the administration of specialized nutrition therapies such as intravenous or tube feeding. MNT includes review and analysis of medical and dietary history, laboratory values, and anthropometric measurements. It involves management of appropriate nutrition intake and self-management training.

RD Requirements

• Complete an approved program in dietetics and a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university
• Complete supervised practical experience in an accredited dietetic internship, program in dietetics, or professional dietetics practice program
• Pass a national registration exam
• Maintain continuing education credits

Areas of Practice

Registered dietitians are trained to work in many areas of practice:

• Cancer
• Diabetes
• Digestive diseases
• Enteral and parenteral nutrition
• Heart disease
• Perinatal care
• Pressure ulcer management

Employment Settings

• Hospitals
• Clinics and ambulatory care centers
• MCOs
• Physician practices
• Private practice
• Consultation
• Community and public health programs
• Extended and long-term care facilities
• Home care

State Regulation

Many states and commonwealths also have laws regulating dietetics practitioners. These laws safeguard the public by establishing and enforcing minimum competency standards for persons working in a regulated profession, and those researching how to become a nutritionist.

The State of California has registration. Registration is an entitlement law that prohibits use of the title "dietitian" by persons not meeting state-mandated qualifications.  

Nutritional Education & Preventative Measures

The American Heart Association states that the best approach to preventing illnesses like heart disease, diabetes and stroke is diet and exercise. This is great because what is in our own control can be changed in as short a time frame as a matter of weeks. if you have a family member/loved one who has had heart surgery at a relatively young age, with lifestyle choices being a contributing factor, learning from that can provide first-hand experience that changing our eating and exercise habits has an immediate impact on our body and it’s metabolism. Even though the weight loss may not show as immediately as we wish, the blood chemistry begins to improve immediately and so our overall health will follow.

In the past 7 years, there has been a noticeable increase in the number of people eating according to the guidelines given in the American Diabetes Association nutritional resource guide. Eat according to their guidelines to give yourself the best chance at a long life of wellness. Canola oil is one of our best choices for use in food preparation since it has the highest amount of omega 3 in its composition, compared to other available cooking oils. This means less saturated fat consumption and more of the “good” fat. Habits are created by repeating the same behavior time and time again. Whether we make the right choices or develop the right habits is totally within our control.

American Diabetes Association Resource Guide

We all have favorite foods we eat time and time again. All we need to do to make a very substantial positive change to our personal health is to find about 10 favorite dishes from The American Diabetes Association nutritional resource guide and make those our favorite recipes to eat repeatedly, while retiring our unhealthy favorites.

Olive Oil and Balsamic Appreciation

NOTE: (Gross) Vegan Recipe submitted by Cal State Bakersfield Nutritionist student Alexandria Woodbridge :

Olive oil and balsamic vinegar are two products that vegans eat every day or every week, and yet most of us know too little about the range of possible flavors in both products. Since I can’t recommend a vegan cheese tasting party because in my mind, vegan cheese isn’t quite good enough at this point to warrant one, this soiree will allow vegans to appreciate olive oil and balsamic in a similar way.


To get more information on the range of flavors for olive oil, please visit The Olive Oil Source website and look at their tasting sheets for olive oil. You can print out a few of them as a reference for your guests at this party. As far as tasting balsamic vinegar, it is very similar to wine tasting as it is also made from grapes. Learn a bit more about balsamic vinegar by visiting its Wikipedia page.

Now to get down to the nitty gritty of this soiree.  Purchase three bottles of fine olive oil and three bottles of fine balsamic vinegar from an Italian food store. As these products keep for quite some time and are always a necessity in the kitchen, don’t feel guilty about the splurge.

Now arrange small bowls or dipping plates around your home with the oils and vinegars in them. Some can be in the kitchen, some on the windowsill, some on the balcony, etc…  The reason I like the oils and vinegars scattered is that it allows people to move around your home instead of being stuck in one place.

Place each bottle besides the bowl or plate containing the product, so that guests can note the ones they really enjoy. Now scatter lots of bread baskets around the house as well, containing a nice range of baguettes (some soft, some toasted), foccacia bread, and other types of light colored breads that will allow the full flavor of the oils and vinegars to come through.

This soiree is very simple and can be the vegan equivalent of a wine and cheese. Make sure to provide some good background music, wine, and the menu below which uses balsamic vinegar and olive oil as ingredients in the dishes.

Menu

Drinks

Red and White Wine

Appetizers

A myriad of baguettes and other lovely breads to dip in olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Baked Portobello Mushroom and Tomato Salad

Preheat the oven to 350.
Scrape the gills from portobello mushroooms caps using a spoon.  One per person.
Fill mushroom cap with 1 Tbs of pesto (recipe to follow) and top with breadcrumbs.
Bake for about 10-15 minutes, or until the mushroom is very fragrant.  You can broil the breadcrumbs if you’d like them a bit more golden.
Now serve on a plate with a few slices of tomato drizzled with olive oil, balsamic, salt, and pepper.

To make the Pesto: In a blender, food processor, or bullet, blend 1 bunch of fresh basil with a few handfuls of either pine nuts or walnuts, a few Tbs of vegan parmesan cheese, 1 clove of garlic, a drizzle of olive oil, a few splashes of balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste. There are many possible variations to pesto, including the use of sundried tomatoes, spicy eggplant, or fresh black olives. You can use this recipe for many things, including the traditional use, served over pasta.

Main Course

Fiddlehead Risotto

Fiddleheads are baby ferns that haven’t yet unfurled.  They have a very distinctive taste and work well in this risotto.


In a medium or large cooking pot, fry 3 cups of cleaned and trimmed whole fiddleheads, 1 bunch of  chopped green onions, and 8 tofurkey slices cut into thin strips in 2 Tbs of olive oil.

• When everything is golden, add 2 cups of risotto rice (arborio rice) and continue to fry for a few minutes to give the rice a bit of color.
• Prepare 6 cups of cold vegetarian stock (I like to use vegetarian chicken stock from the Trader Joe's) making it only mildly salty in a large mixing bowl.
• Now using a soup ladle, ladle 1 spoonful of the stock into the rice and stir until the liquid is absorbed.  Now repeat, adding the stock 1 ladle-full at a time and giving the rice a few minutes to absorb the stock each time while stirring constantly.  Continue to add stock until the rice is cooked thoroughly, stirring constantly.  This process will take about 20-25 minutes.
• Once the rice is cooked, stir in 1/3  cup of plain flavored soy coffee creamer, 3 Tbs of pesto (recipe above with the Baked Mushroom Salad recipe), 1/4 cup of vegan parmesan cheese, and pepper to taste.  You probably won’t need to add salt.

Serve topped with a bit of finely chopped green onion.

Dessert

Olive Oil Chocolate Cake with Candied Mint

For this recipe, prepare the candied mint at least a day before you plan to serve the cake.

• Preheat the oven to 350.
• In a 10-inch round springform cake pan or any other 10-inch round baking dish, mix together with a whisk;
• 1 1/4 cups of white or pastry flour
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1/4 cup of cornstarch
• 1/4 cup of cocoa powder
• 1 tsp of baking soda
• 1/2 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp of salt
• Whisk dry ingredients until they are well mixed.  Now to the dry ingredients, add;
• 1 cup of soymilk
• 1/3 cup of olive oil
• 1 Tbs of lemon juice
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract
• Whisk until batter is smooth, wipe edges of cake pan with a paper towel, and bake for 40 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out clean.)

To make the candied mint:

Melt 2 Tbs of honey or other liquid sweetener in the microwave for 15 seconds in a small bowl.
Working quickly, brush 8 nice mint leaves and 1 mint sprig (the tip of the plant) with the honey and dip them in fine sugar. Allow them to dry for a day or two. Arrange the 8 pieces of mint in a circle around the chocolate cake and put the sprig in the middle. Serve the cake with vanilla soy ice cream.