Daily tasks/Routine activities

1. Stain tissue specimens with dyes or other chemicals to make cell details visible under microscopes.

2. Cut sections of body tissues for microscopic examination using microtome.

3. Mount tissue specimens on glass slides.

4. Embed tissue specimens into paraffin wax blocks or infiltrate tissue specimens with wax.

5. Examine slides under microscopes to ensure tissue preparation meets laboratory requirements.

6. Freeze tissue specimens.

7. Perform procedures associated with histochemistry to prepare specimens for immunofluorescence or microscopy.

8. Operate computerized laboratory equipment to dehydrate, decalcify, or microincinerate tissue samples.

9. Maintain laboratory equipment such as microscopes, mass spectrometers, microtomes, immunostainers, tissue processors, embedding centers, and water baths.

10. Identify tissue structures or cell components to be used in the diagnosis, prevention, or treatment of diseases.

11. Supervise histology laboratory activities.

12. Prepare or use prepared tissue specimens for teaching, research or diagnostic purposes.

13. Teach students or other staff.

Key knowledge areas

The following knowledge areas aid a Histologist  to execute his/her duties better;

Biology — Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

Chemistry — Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Administration and Management — Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

Skills 

Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Monitoring — Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.

Abilities

Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Arm-Hand Steadiness — The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.

Finger Dexterity — The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.

Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.