Hybrid Mentorship of Medical Laboratories to Achieve ISO 15189:2012 Accreditation in Malawi: The University of Maryland Malawi Experience

As part of a laboratory strengthening program in Malawi to achieve and maintain International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 15189 accreditation, we intended to mentor selected HIV molecular laboratories to achieve this accreditation. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, mentorship pivoted to a hyb...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Global health science and practice 2024-12, Vol.12 (6)
Main Authors: Moyo, Hannaniah, Osawe, Sophia, Nyangulu, Charles, Ndhlovu, Philemon, Harawa, Visopo, Divala, Oscar, Msukwa, Malango, Croxton, Talishiea, Blanco, Natalia, Mwandama, Dyson, Mkandawire, Memory, Kampira, Elizabeth, Kaba, Muluken, Maida, Alice, Auld, Andrew F, Kim, Lindsay, Mwenda, Reuben, Kress, Howard, Kandulu, James, Sumani, Thresa, Bitilinyu, Joseph, Kalua, Thokozani, Abimiku, Alash'le
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accreditation
COVID-19
Humans
Laboratories - standards
Malawi
Mentors
Original
Quality Improvement
SARS-CoV-2
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Summary:As part of a laboratory strengthening program in Malawi to achieve and maintain International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 15189 accreditation, we intended to mentor selected HIV molecular laboratories to achieve this accreditation. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, mentorship pivoted to a hybrid model using an Internet-based approach and on-site mentorships. We describe the implementation of this strategy, successes, and challenges. We conducted weekly, 1-hour virtual mentorship sessions for the 5 initial laboratories (cohort 1) selected based on their Stepwise Laboratory Quality Improvement Process Towards Accreditation (SLIPTA) performance score of 3 or more stars. Laboratories presented updates and supporting documents electronically, and trainings were conducted virtually. In September 2020, when travel restrictions were relaxed, we initiated hybrid mentorships and audits for cohort 1 laboratories. The same hybrid approach was used to mentor 4 additional laboratories in cohort 2. We performed descriptive analysis, and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to compare the training pre-and post-test scores. Between March 2020 and May 2023, the team completed a total of 54 virtual mentorship sessions and 20 on-site visits across 9 laboratories. Overall, the team conducted 8 training sessions for 35 laboratory quality officers. Median score improvement (pre-test vs. post-test scores) was observed across individual trainings and across cohorts (
ISSN:2169-575X
2169-575X
DOI:10.9745/GHSP-D-24-00254