The critical role of Biomedical Laboratory Scientists
THE term Biomedical Science refers to investigations carried out by Biomedical Laboratory Scientists (BLS) on samples of tissue and body fluids to diagnose diseases and monitor the treatment of patients. These category of scientists work in health care facilities to help doctors diagnose disease and evaluate the effectiveness of treatment through the analysis of fluids and tissue samples from patients.
They provide the "engine room" of modern medicine with 70 per cent of diagnoses based on the pathology results provided by laboratory services.
The work of the BLS in disease management, which include cancer screening, diagnosing HIV, blood transfusion for surgery, food poisoning and infection control, makes them the foundation of modern health care.
It is, therefore, prudent to enhance the value of the BLS by providing professional career development to enable them produce accurate and reliable test results.
Therefore, the role of the BLS in the diagnoses and management of diseases cannot be relegated to the background.
For this reason, in 1996, a world-wide Biomedical Laboratory Science Day was instituted by the 22nd General Assembly of Delegates of the International Federation of Biomedical Laboratory Science (IFBLS) in Oslo, Norway with the aim of highlighting specific health problems from the perspective of the profession and also to promote the profession of Biomedical Medical Laboratory Scientists and their role in the management of such health problems.
Following up to that meeting, April 22 of each year is set aside to celebrate the role of the BLS. The theme for this year's celebration; "The role of biomedical laboratory scientists in the global management of communicable diseases," is to emphasise the important role that clinical laboratories play in diagnosing, managing, treating and preventing diseases.
In Ghana, and in other countries plagued with communicable diseases, the theme for this year’s celebration is very relevant, considering the fact that communicable diseases have been found to result in morbidity and mortality. The situation is attributed to a number of factors, including lack of capacities of clinical laboratories to adequately perform tests and produce accurate and reliable results.
The laboratory has a critical role to play in supporting the delivery of Ghana's health care delivery system targeted at the management of communicable diseases in the country.
However, it appears that over the years, the resource requirements of a laboratory service and the lack of understanding of their function have been barriers to allocating adequate resources to support their operations.
Without an effective laboratory service provided by BLS, patient diagnosis and care are often compromised, expensive drug treatments are squandered, diagnosis are missed and information about public health becomes inaccurate. It is also impossible to measure the true effectiveness of interventions and to conduct accurate disease surveillance.
The role of the BLS is to look for bacteria, parasites and other micro organisms; analyse the chemical content of fluids; match blood for transfusions and test for drug levels in the blood that show how a patient is responding to treatment.
They also prepare specimens for examination, count cells and look for abnormal cells in blood and body fluids by using microscopes. They, therefore, need sophisticated laboratory equipment capable of performing a number of tests simultaneously, after which they analyse the results and relay them on to physicians.
Unfortunately, the challenges posed in the profession include the lack of adequate staff, inexperienced staff at the district and sub-district levels and the disruption of services due to shortage of supplies.
At the government level, the value of the BLS can be enhanced by preparing and adopting a National Health Laboratory Strategic Plan and Policy, passage of the Legal and Regulatory Framework (Allied Health Professions Bill) and establishing an Oversight Mechanism at the Ministry of Health.
Others include the formation of an advisory body for laboratories and the certification of professionals and laboratories.
And at the association level, the value of the BLS can be improved by instituting training programmes for its members and having regular interface with the public for awareness creation.
These were among the recommendations made by the Ghana Association of Biomedical Laboratory Scientists (GABMLS) at the launch of the International Laboratory Day celebration, which falls on April 15 this year.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Director of the Clinical Laboratory Unit of the Ghana Health Service, Mr Ekow Binney, noted that Biomedical Laboratory Scientists were the foundation of any modern medical care delivery in every country, thus, the need to attach much importance to the profession.
“Without them, testing, diagnosis and treatment among others could not be possible in medical circles,” he added.
He, therefore, advocated a national policy that would take care of biomedical laboratory scientists in terms of their challenges and the future of the profession.
Mr Binney also called for the establishment of an advisory body to advise the Ministry of Health on concerns of Biomedical Laboratory Scientists in the country.
He urged the national executives to institute a regular training programme for its members to be abreast with best practices.
The President of GABMLS, Mr Prince Sokode Amuzu, commended the Ministry of Health for its ability to manage communicable diseases.
However, he said, “The future will require much more from us as a country, such as instituting a legal framework to protect the interests of patients from quack and unscrupulous individuals and groups who are bent on taking advantage of a lawless environment to enrich themselves to the detriment of Ghanaians."
Mr Amuzu explained that it was necessary not to use non-evidence base policy for treating communicable diseases, which was the sole reason for the rising incidence of drug resistance in the country.
"We need a situation where every person needing treatment from communicable diseases would have the appropriate test conducted by qualified medical laboratory practitioner and then specific drugs prescribed for treatment," he added.
They provide the "engine room" of modern medicine with 70 per cent of diagnoses based on the pathology results provided by laboratory services.
The work of the BLS in disease management, which include cancer screening, diagnosing HIV, blood transfusion for surgery, food poisoning and infection control, makes them the foundation of modern health care.
It is, therefore, prudent to enhance the value of the BLS by providing professional career development to enable them produce accurate and reliable test results.
Therefore, the role of the BLS in the diagnoses and management of diseases cannot be relegated to the background.
For this reason, in 1996, a world-wide Biomedical Laboratory Science Day was instituted by the 22nd General Assembly of Delegates of the International Federation of Biomedical Laboratory Science (IFBLS) in Oslo, Norway with the aim of highlighting specific health problems from the perspective of the profession and also to promote the profession of Biomedical Medical Laboratory Scientists and their role in the management of such health problems.
Following up to that meeting, April 22 of each year is set aside to celebrate the role of the BLS. The theme for this year's celebration; "The role of biomedical laboratory scientists in the global management of communicable diseases," is to emphasise the important role that clinical laboratories play in diagnosing, managing, treating and preventing diseases.
In Ghana, and in other countries plagued with communicable diseases, the theme for this year’s celebration is very relevant, considering the fact that communicable diseases have been found to result in morbidity and mortality. The situation is attributed to a number of factors, including lack of capacities of clinical laboratories to adequately perform tests and produce accurate and reliable results.
The laboratory has a critical role to play in supporting the delivery of Ghana's health care delivery system targeted at the management of communicable diseases in the country.
However, it appears that over the years, the resource requirements of a laboratory service and the lack of understanding of their function have been barriers to allocating adequate resources to support their operations.
Without an effective laboratory service provided by BLS, patient diagnosis and care are often compromised, expensive drug treatments are squandered, diagnosis are missed and information about public health becomes inaccurate. It is also impossible to measure the true effectiveness of interventions and to conduct accurate disease surveillance.
The role of the BLS is to look for bacteria, parasites and other micro organisms; analyse the chemical content of fluids; match blood for transfusions and test for drug levels in the blood that show how a patient is responding to treatment.
They also prepare specimens for examination, count cells and look for abnormal cells in blood and body fluids by using microscopes. They, therefore, need sophisticated laboratory equipment capable of performing a number of tests simultaneously, after which they analyse the results and relay them on to physicians.
Unfortunately, the challenges posed in the profession include the lack of adequate staff, inexperienced staff at the district and sub-district levels and the disruption of services due to shortage of supplies.
At the government level, the value of the BLS can be enhanced by preparing and adopting a National Health Laboratory Strategic Plan and Policy, passage of the Legal and Regulatory Framework (Allied Health Professions Bill) and establishing an Oversight Mechanism at the Ministry of Health.
Others include the formation of an advisory body for laboratories and the certification of professionals and laboratories.
And at the association level, the value of the BLS can be improved by instituting training programmes for its members and having regular interface with the public for awareness creation.
These were among the recommendations made by the Ghana Association of Biomedical Laboratory Scientists (GABMLS) at the launch of the International Laboratory Day celebration, which falls on April 15 this year.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Director of the Clinical Laboratory Unit of the Ghana Health Service, Mr Ekow Binney, noted that Biomedical Laboratory Scientists were the foundation of any modern medical care delivery in every country, thus, the need to attach much importance to the profession.
“Without them, testing, diagnosis and treatment among others could not be possible in medical circles,” he added.
He, therefore, advocated a national policy that would take care of biomedical laboratory scientists in terms of their challenges and the future of the profession.
Mr Binney also called for the establishment of an advisory body to advise the Ministry of Health on concerns of Biomedical Laboratory Scientists in the country.
He urged the national executives to institute a regular training programme for its members to be abreast with best practices.
The President of GABMLS, Mr Prince Sokode Amuzu, commended the Ministry of Health for its ability to manage communicable diseases.
However, he said, “The future will require much more from us as a country, such as instituting a legal framework to protect the interests of patients from quack and unscrupulous individuals and groups who are bent on taking advantage of a lawless environment to enrich themselves to the detriment of Ghanaians."
Mr Amuzu explained that it was necessary not to use non-evidence base policy for treating communicable diseases, which was the sole reason for the rising incidence of drug resistance in the country.
"We need a situation where every person needing treatment from communicable diseases would have the appropriate test conducted by qualified medical laboratory practitioner and then specific drugs prescribed for treatment," he added.
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