From Mustapha Adamu, Kano
Dr Tosan Erhabor, the Registrar, Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) said that the council inspected 103 new laboratories, sealed 23 others and arrested six quacks from May 2023 till date.
Erhabor told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the council has made significant efforts to check quackery and to ensure credible medical diagnosis in the last one year.
He said that these promoted professionalism among medical laboratory scientists, reduced quackery, thus assuring quality and reliable test results.
According to him, registration and inspection of medical laboratories is one of the core mandates of the council to ensure medical laboratories met the pre-approval requirements of the council.
Others, he said, are to conduct routine monitoring and inspection for compliance to standard of practice and apprehend, prosecute quacks and discipline professionals involved in unwholesome and sub-standard practices.
On education, he said the council conducted routine assessment of universities offering Bachelor of Medical Laboratory Science (BMLS) programme and Colleges of Health Technology (CHTs) offering Medical Laboratory Technicians (MLT) programme.
Erhabor said that the council used structured resource verification and accreditation checklists, in line with the council minimum academic standard (BMAS) to conducte the routine assessment.
“These resource verification and accreditation assessments were done with a view to assessing the manpower, equipment, infrastructure available for teaching, provision of diagnostic services, research and development at those institutions,” he said.
According to him, the impact of this is upon graduation and induction, as more qualified and competent medical laboratory professionals will be available to man Nigeria’s health laboratory subsector, thus checking quackery and ensuring credible medical diagnosis.
