CLSI Executive Vice President Glen Fine, along with over 200 senior staff members representing Ministries of Health and medical laboratories from 62 countries, attended a joint World Health Organization (WHO)/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) International Conference on Health Laboratory Quality Systems in Lyon, France, 9-11 April. Mr. Fine was the plenary session keynote speaker and set the stage for the conference in his talk Why Quality Systems Are Essential for Good Laboratory Practice.   

The WHO/CDC conference examined ways to ensure the provision of accurate, reliable, and timely laboratory test results that are essential to health activities, and to support international health improvements. Widespread epidemics caused by pathogens have cost the lives of millions, and many countries continue to struggle with rampant infectious and chronic diseases.

“The conference presented a unique opportunity for worldwide senior health care officials to learn the critical importance of the role of the medical laboratory in the diagnosis and monitoring of all of the world’s major infectious diseases. Participants left with specific strategies to elevate the profile, specific tools for advocating for increased awareness and funding for in-country laboratory capacity building, and the critical importance of building infrastructure based on a quality systems approach. One of the greatest values of the conference was the great opportunity to meet such a varied mix of people, develop new professional relationships,  share experiences, and make new friends that will last long after the conference,” said Fine.

The objectives of the conference were to advocate the need of strengthening laboratory quality, with particular attention to resource-limited settings, and in part to propose guidance on the quality systems development and implementation at the national level. 

More specifically, it focused on:

1. Reviewing and discussing the quality systems suitable for a county’s particular environment and economic realities.
2. Discussing strategies for how to institute a well-integrated laboratory quality system into a country’s existing overall national laboratory system.
3. Sharing successful experiences and challenges of countries that are already along the path of development and successful implementation.
4. Developing an advocacy paper on Health (Medical) Laboratory Quality Systems.

CLSI volunteers were well represented at the meeting with:

• Ms. Valerie Wilson, current Global Advisory Committee Member, a featured speaker on the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre (CAREC) experiences.
• Dr. Klaus Stinshoff, recent CLSI board member and current Chair of the Global Advisory Committee, chairing day 3 activities.
• Dr. Charles Massambu, Tanzania Ministry of Health, and Dr. Christina Mwangi, CDC Tanzania, as featured day 1 and day 2 speakers.
• Dr. Michael Noble as the day 2 External Quality Assessment (EQA) Breakout Group Chairman.
• Numerous other familiar faces to CLSI in the audience.

Fine said, “This conference was a tremendous two-way teaching and learning experience for CLSI. Given our increased recognition internationally in the area of quality systems, in particular with our direct technical assistance in five grant-supported sub-Saharan African countries, CLSI was delighted to contribute to this conference’s success.”
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