Jane Ruth Aceng, the Minister of Health, has underscored the crucial need to elevate laboratory services to the departmental level, positioning them as fundamental areas of concern for governments.
Aceng emphasizes that when laboratory services operate at the department level, the designated head can make policy decisions and allocate a budget, thus ensuring smooth operation of any country’s health sector.
“Without elevated laboratory services, the health sector cannot fulfill its duties accurately, as the foundation for correct information lies there. Elevating them ensures the country’s health sector moves in the right direction,” she explained.
These remarks were made on the third day of the ongoing African Society for Laboratory Medicine conference (ASLM) 2023 in South Africa.
In the presence of laboratory directors from across Africa, Aceng, along with Dr. Holenn Serge Emmanuel, the Deputy Health Minister of DRC, ASLM, and Africa Center for Disease Control, signed a crucial call to empower laboratory directors in governing medical laboratory services.
In this call to action, they recognized the critical role laboratory and diagnostic services play in delivering high-quality clinical care, epidemic preparedness, and early detection and response to emerging outbreaks. However, they expressed concern about limited resources available to laboratory directorates to support their services.
They appealed to national governments, donors, partners, and implementers to ensure adequate resourcing, visibility, and the inclusion of laboratory directorates in decision-making processes.
They also urged the establishment of mechanisms to streamline approvals and timely release of funds for critical activities.
Under the theme “Shaping Laboratory Systems and Diagnostic Services for the 21st Century,” the ASLM conference 2023 serves as a platform for professionals and experts in laboratory medicine and diagnostics from Africa and around the world to collaborate, share cutting-edge research, and showcase the latest advancements in the field.
This is the type of report we wanted to hear.
Thank you so much for this type of report card.
I can now relate why the conference was all about.
We were asking for a report but they were telling us 53% of those people had abstract, we wondered whether that was a report, to the fact that millions didn’t attend the conference and yet needed to know why the conference was all about,
Once again thank you so much again.
The performance of Laboratory services are advancing well.
Emphasis on efficiency of Laboratory services at the lowest levels ( including effective involvement in regular community surveys/ assessments) would increase access to better health by even more.
What Dr Acheng said can work in south Africa and other countries but not Uganda because of corruption
For us at Mbarara University and Referral Teaching Hospital (MRRH), we have already achieved this milestone. We lead, as others follow.
Good move Dr