Council tasks medical labs on quality service
Dr Tosan Erhabor, Registrar, Medical Laboratory Council of Nigeria (MLCN) on Tuesday called on medical laboratories in the country to always adhere to professional standards in the discharge of their responsibilities.
Erhabor made the call on the occasion of the presentation of the ISO 15189 certificate to Lifebridege Medical Diagnostic Centre in Abuja.
ISO 15189 is an award of competence and quality by the International Standard Organisation (ISO).
Erhabor said that quality and standard should not be uncompromised in the medical process, especially in medical laboratory science.
The MLCN registrar, who congratulated Lifebridege on the award, urged the organisation to sustain the high quality and standard service delivery that earned it the award.
He said that laboratory samples were very critical in determining the direction of about 70 per cent of treatment and monitoring of patients.
“70 per cent of results provided by laboratories is what is used for treatment and monitoring of patients.
“The era of taking laboratory samples to three laboratories before getting results is over’’, he said.
Erhabor described Lifebridege as the first privately-owned laboratory with ISO 15189 certificate in the Federal Capital Territory.
According to him, it is a demonstration of its commitment to quality and standard in service delivery.
The registrar warned that by the year 2025 laboratories with low standards and poor quality management systems would be stripped of their operational licences.
Earlier, Dr Godwin Sale, Managing Director, Lifebridege Medical Diagnostic Centre, said that the centre was set up to save both lives and money for its clients.
Sale affirmed the determination of the centre in cutting down on resources spent by Nigerians on medical tourism by providing quality and laboratory services.
“Shortly after commissioning, we became a one-stop centre for all diagnostic needs within the first two years of operation.
“Lifebridege expanded its services to include Endoscopy, Histopathology and a world-class molecular pathology laboratory where all DNA and RNA based-tests/investigations are carried out,” he said.
He assured of the preparedness of the centre to continue to provide quality and standard healthcare to Nigerians in partnership with the Federal Government.
The managing director described the ISO 15189 award of excellence as a booster for the organisation to deliver more quality service delivery.
Dr Ike Okonkwo, Consultant Pathologist, Maitama District Hospital, lauded Lifebridege Medical Diagnostic Centre for its commitment to quality services.
Okonkwo urged them to sustain the tempo, saying that quality service delivery was not negotiable in the medical sector.
