Enhancing accreditation outcomes for medical laboratories on the Strengthening Laboratory Management Toward Accreditation programme in Kenya via a rapid results initiative

African Journal of Laboratory Medicine

 
 
Field Value
 
Title Enhancing accreditation outcomes for medical laboratories on the Strengthening Laboratory Management Toward Accreditation programme in Kenya via a rapid results initiative
 
Creator Makokha, Ernest P. Ondondo, Raphael O. Kimani, Daniel K. Gachuki, Thomas Basiye, Frank Njeru, Mercy Junghae, Muthoni Downer, Marie Umuro, Mamo Mburu, Margaret Mwangi, Jane
 
Subject Laboratory medicine rapid results initiative; accreditation; quality systems essentials; SLIPTA; SLMTA; e-SLIPTA checklist
Description Background: Since 2010, Kenya has used SLIPTA to prepare and improve quality management systems in medical laboratories to achieve ISO 15189 accreditation. However, less than 10% of enrolled laboratories had done so in the initial seven years of SLMTA implementation.Objective: We described Kenya’s experience in accelerating medical laboratories on SLMTA to attain ISO 15189 accreditation.Methods: From March 2017 to July 2017, an aggressive top-down approach through high-level management stakeholder engagement for buy-in, needs-based expedited SLIPTA mentorship and on-site support as a rapid results initiative (RRI) was implemented in 39 laboratories whose quality improvement process had stagnated for 2–7 years. In July 2017, SLIPTA baseline and exit audit average scores on quality essential elements were compared to assess performance.Results: After RRI, laboratories achieving greater than a 2-star SLMTA rating increased significantly from 15 (38%) at baseline to 33 (85%) (p  0.001). Overall, 34/39 (87%) laboratories received ISO 15189 accreditation within two years of RRI, leading to a 330% increase in the number of accredited laboratories in Kenya. The most improved of the 12 quality system essentials were Equipment Management (mean increase 95% CI: 5.31 ± 1.89) and Facilities and Biosafety (mean increase [95% CI: 4.05 ± 1.78]) (both: p  0.0001). Information Management and Corrective Action Management remained the most challenging to improve, despite RRI interventions.Conclusion: High-level advocacy and targeted mentorship through RRI dramatically improved laboratory accreditation in Kenya. Similar approaches of strengthening SLIPTA implementation could improve SLMTA outcomes in other countries with similar challenges.
 
Publisher AOSIS
 
Contributor U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Date 2022-05-31
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — Continous quality improvement, measurement and analysis
Format text/html application/epub+zip text/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/ajlm.v11i1.1614
 
Source African Journal of Laboratory Medicine; Vol 11, No 1 (2022); 8 pages 2225-2010 2225-2002
 
Language eng
 
Relation
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https://ajlmonline.org/index.php/ajlm/article/view/1614/2242 https://ajlmonline.org/index.php/ajlm/article/view/1614/2243 https://ajlmonline.org/index.php/ajlm/article/view/1614/2244 https://ajlmonline.org/index.php/ajlm/article/view/1614/2245
 
Coverage — — Laboratory Quality System Essentials
Rights Copyright (c) 2022 Ernest P. Makokha, Raphael O. Ondondo, Daniel K. Kimani, Thomas Gachuki, Frank Basiye, Mercy Njeru, Muthoni Junghae, Marie Downer, Mamo Umuro, Margaret Mburu, Jane Mwangi https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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