Building and Rebuilding: The National Public Health Laboratory Systems and Services Before and After the Earthquake and Cholera Epidemic, Haiti, 2009-2015

Before the 2010 devastating earthquake and cholera outbreak, Haiti's public health laboratory systems were weak and services were limited. There was no national laboratory strategic plan and only minimal coordination across the laboratory network. Laboratory capacity was further weakened by the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene 2017-10, Vol.97 (4_Suppl), p.21-27
Main Authors: Jean Louis, Frantz, Buteau, Josiane, Boncy, Jacques, Anselme, Renette, Stanislas, Magalie, Nagel, Mary C, Juin, Stanley, Charles, Macarthur, Burris, Robert, Antoine, Eva, Yang, Chunfu, Kalou, Mireille, Vertefeuille, John, Marston, Barbara J, Lowrance, David W, Deyde, Varough
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cholera - epidemiology
Clinical Laboratory Services
Disasters
Dysentery - diagnosis
Dysentery - epidemiology
Earthquakes
Epidemics
Haiti - epidemiology
HIV Infections - diagnosis
HIV Infections - epidemiology
Humans
Laboratories
Malaria - diagnosis
Malaria - epidemiology
Molecular Diagnostic Techniques
Public Health
Tuberculosis - diagnosis
Tuberculosis - epidemiology
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Summary:Before the 2010 devastating earthquake and cholera outbreak, Haiti's public health laboratory systems were weak and services were limited. There was no national laboratory strategic plan and only minimal coordination across the laboratory network. Laboratory capacity was further weakened by the destruction of over 25 laboratories and testing sites at the departmental and peripheral levels and the loss of life among the laboratory health-care workers. However, since 2010, tremendous progress has been made in building stronger laboratory infrastructure and training a qualified public health laboratory workforce across the country, allowing for decentralization of access to quality-assured services. Major achievements include development and implementation of a national laboratory strategic plan with a formalized and strengthened laboratory network; introduction of automation of testing to ensure better quality of results and diversify the menu of tests to effectively respond to outbreaks; expansion of molecular testing for tuberculosis, human immunodeficiency virus, malaria, diarrheal and respiratory diseases; establishment of laboratory-based surveillance of epidemic-prone diseases; and improvement of the overall quality of testing. Nonetheless, the progress and gains made remain fragile and require the full ownership and continuous investment from the Haitian government to sustain these successes and achievements.
ISSN:0002-9637
1476-1645
DOI:10.4269/ajtmh.16-0941