Medical Laboratory Scientists, the hidden heroes that saves lives

Medical Laboratory Science (also called Clinical Laboratory Science) is one of the most under-recognized health professions with excellent job prospects. They are a variety of skilled and educated laboratory professionals who, as a patient, you may never see face-to-face.

These individuals play a very vital role in the health care delivery. People working in the clinical laboratory are responsible for conducting tests that provide crucial information for detecting, diagnosing, treating, and monitoring disease. Since lab professionals often work behind the scenes, few people know much about the critical testing they perform every day.

These professionals use specialized instrumentation and techniques to analyze patients’ samples, such as blood, urine, body fluids and tissue, and stool. In Nigeria, the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria (AMLSN) has always emphasized its primary goal to see that Nigerians have the best of care laboratory wise.

According to Bassey Enya Bassey, AMLSN National President, even though progress has been made over the years to strengthen the capacity of medical laboratory to support diseases surveillance in the country, there is still need to do more.

Speaking at the 55th Annual Scientific Conference and workshop of the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria with the theme: ‘Global Health Security: The Medical Laboratory Agenda for Sub- Saharan Africa’’, Bassey lamented that laboratories are usually given low priority and recognition in most health delivery systems.

According to him, medical laboratory is the engine room of epidemiology, diseases surveillance and outbreak response. ‘’ Although progress has been made in strengthening medical laboratory capacity to support diseases surveillance, prevention and control, polio eradication and measles elimination, however, challenges still remain.

‘’These include; poor implementation of the national laboratory policy and the strategy for medical laboratory services, insufficient funding, inadequate trained medical laboratory personnel, weak medical laboratory infrastructure; old or inadequate serviced equipment, lack of essential reagents and consumables and limited quality assurance and control.

‘’countries with well -functional medical laboratory systems are more likely to detect an outbreak early, when chances of rapid containment are best and are better prepared to cope with.

This conference aims to bring together the global health security community to agree on a set of principles to guide the field and set priorities’’, he said.

Bassey added that to prevent devastating outbreaks like ‘’Ebola’’ in Nigeria, there is need for a resilient and inclusive health system that will be extended to rural areas.

‘’There should also be access to effective and accessible vaccines, diagnostic and treatments, outstanding medical laboratory and logistics capacity.

Today, an estimated 400 million people have no access whatsoever to the most basic health services’’, Bassey added.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government reaffirmed its continued willingness to work with all stakeholders in building strong and sustainable healthcare systems.

The Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, who gave the assurance also promised to support stakeholders to prepare, detect and respond to any disease outbreak in any part of the country.

The Vice President, who was represented by the Minister for Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, said that Global Health Security is a top priority agenda for the country and should not be left unchecked.

He explained that a single infectious disease outbreak anywhere in the world has the potential to become a larger epidemic, or worse, a pandemic that could devastate entire communities.

According to him, global health security cannot be achieved by the government alone, but by all stakeholders coming together to strengthening the capacity to work together.

Also, Prof. Eyitayo Lambo, a former Minister of Health, called for a greater and sustained investments in health security.

He said this will be achievable through organising high-level discussions with field experts, government officials and civil society organisations.

Lambo urged the participants at the conference to work togetherin ensuring that Nigeria comply with the International Health Regulations, to enhance better preparation in preventing infectious diseases.

He explained that AMLSN was the first health-related association to hold a conference with a theme binding on Global Health Security Agenda.

Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, the Director General of Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) in his presentation, recalled how the centre restructured the reference laboratory.

He also stressed on the important work Medical Laboratory Scientists were doing in diagnosis of communicable diseases.

Ihekweazu stated that the NCDC is also speaking with the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) on accreditation of its reference laboratory.

He said this was with a view to opening avenues for intern Medical Laboratory Scientists and Training of the young Medical Laboratory Scientists, which would provide opportunities for trainings on molecular techniques.

The NCDC Director General, however, outlined the five major priorities of the centre to include having a strong National Reference Laboratory (NRL) and a strong Public Health Laboratory, networked to each other and linked to NRL.

Others are a centre for diagnosis and research, to guide disease surveillance in the country; a diagnostic support to other West African countries; and a platform.

Similarly, in his address, Dr Daniel Duval, of Centre for Disease Control (CDC), Nigeria, said that global health security was about stopping an already existing diseases outbreak and preventing future occurrences.

Duval said that working with partners, the U.S. government seeks to accelerate progress toward a world safe from disease threats.

He said that the CDC would continue to work with the government of Nigeria and other partners to achieve the Global Health Security Agenda.

According to him, this is by focusing on workforce development, emergency response, surveillance, laboratory and border health point-of-entry interventions.