Partnerships Bolster African Labs

CDC IN SOUTH AFRICA BLOG
CDC-South Africa, Laboratory Advisor, Zawadi Chipeta

Adequate diagnostic capacity is key to improving global health. Here at CDC-South Africa, through the Laboratory Branch, we work closely with the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) to continue building laboratory capacity and strengthening laboratory infrastructure for rapid, effective disease response. To ensure sustained enhancement and advancement for laboratory programs, experts in the field, together with CDC-South Africa’s Division of Global HIV/AIDS (DGHA) International Laboratory Branch, are regularly meeting and developing partnerships. I recently attended two meetings that were very important to the continued advancement of laboratory programs in Africa. These meetings are described below.

CDC-South Africa, Laboratory Advisor, Zawadi Chipeta

Strengthening HIV Viral Load Testing

In April, laboratory scientists and other health professionals from around the world met under the theme of “Viral Load Testing in African HIV Treatment Programmes”. With the African Society for Laboratory Medicine coordinating, more than 20 African Ministries of Health and other partners like the World Health Organization and the Southern African HIV Clinicians’ Society met to develop strategies for strengthening HIV viral load testing capacity in Africa. Key to this meeting was the enhancement of partnerships to support the scale-up of this important diagnostic test and monitoring marker of HIV infection.

Labs for Life Kick-Off

The following week I was privileged to represent CDC-South Africa at the kick-off meeting for Labs for Life, a public-private partnership between PEPFAR/CDC and Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD) that aims to strengthen laboratory systems in Africa. The meeting showcased laboratory strengthening projects relevant to core PEPFAR goals for HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment. This two-day meeting brought together 19 representatives from Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, Uganda and India. Attendees were from Ministries of Health, CDC, BD, and the Office of the Global AIDS Coordinator (OGAC).

CDC-South Africa supports Labs for Life by working with the South African NHLS through the African Centre for Integrated Laboratory Training (ACILT) to provide hands-on training and mentoring for partner countries to develop a skilled laboratory workforce. Together, all partners are working towards training a workforce that can manage efficient laboratories that support quality diagnostics in a timely and reliable manner. For example, CDC- South Africa, in partnership with NHLS through ACILT, supports a diverse tuberculosis (TB) training program, enhancing the quality of TB diagnosis for Africa.

Labs are the Foundation of Public Health

In continuing our response to the HIV epidemic in Africa, meetings such as these are crucial and highlight the vital role of laboratories to alleviate the burden of HIV as well as in all aspects of health care.

CDC-South Africa will continue its collaboration with stakeholders to ensure laboratory excellence throughout Africa. With their increasing knowledge of the relevance of quality laboratories, governments and communities will be much more effective in creating an environment where all people can live healthier lives.