Did you know that Ontario medical professionals have processed and analyzed over 13 million COVID-19 tests, and complete over 244.8 million laboratory tests annually for other conditions?

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic helping to shine a light on their important work, it is just but a portion of what they do - one of the 1.2 million tests conducted daily. This year, April 10-16 is National Medical Laboratory Week (NMLW), a time to recognize the work done by the medical laboratory professionals who are essential to health care.

As such, we highlight the indigo laboratory coat which serves as an iconic symbol of the noble profession.

Printed on the coat in microscopic indigo type, are the names of the 1.2 million laboratory tests done daily in laboratories across the country; tests that help diagnose and treat the thousands of health issues that impact Canadians such as cancer, auto-immune diseases, diabetes and as of recent, COVID-19.

The colour indigo was chosen as it represents confidence, intelligence, truth, trust, ambition, and devotion - all characteristics of hard-working laboratory professionals.

We applaud and celebrate the selfless work that our medical laboratory professionals have put in for the sake of all Canadians, and we intend to honour them throughout NMLW by amplifying the Canadian Society for Medical Laboratory Science’s campaign to acknowledge and create awareness about their crucial role in patient care.

Resources

• Celebrate NMLW by supporting the CSMLS campaign: https://labweek.csmls.org
• Learn more about medical laboratory professionals and their crucial role in patient care: indigolabcoat.ca; https://medlabprofessionals.ca