The road map for ISO 15189-laboratory accreditation: The Experience of Manhiça Health Research Centre (CISM) laboratory, in southern Mozambique

African Journal of Laboratory Medicine

 
 
Field Value
 
Title The road map for ISO 15189-laboratory accreditation: The Experience of Manhiça Health Research Centre (CISM) laboratory, in southern Mozambique
 
Creator Vubil, Delfino C. Cossa, Anelsio Salvador, Ergel Bene, Miguel Manhiça, Geraldo Jairoce, Chenjerai Mambuque, Edson Quimice, Lázaro Macete, Eusébio V. Saute, Francisco Mandomando, Inacio
 
Subject — laboratory accreditation; quality management systems; ISO 15189; CISM; Mozambique
Description Background: Accreditation is an effective way to recognise the quality and competence of a clinical laboratory. Here we describe the steps towards ISO 15189:2012 accreditation of the Manhiça Health Research Centre laboratory, in Mozambique.Intervention: The accreditation process started in 2012 with a pre-assessment through the Stepwise Laboratory Improvement Process Towards Accreditation, followed by application to the Portuguese Accreditation Institute in 2014, which conducted two audits in 2018 and 2019. Most findings from the accreditation audits were related to personnel management, equipment and reagents. In 2020, the laboratory obtained the accreditation for ISO 15189:2012 and competence for identification and quantification of Plasmodium species by microscopy; full blood count; determination of creatinine, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, total bilirubin, gamma glutamyl transferase, urea; CD4 count; identification and quantification of interferon-γ; detection and quantification of P. falciparum by real-time polymerase chain reaction; rotavirus genotyping; detection of rotavirus by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay; and bacterial culture, identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing.Lessons learnt: Laboratory accreditation is a complex process, which is only possible with the involvement of the whole organisation. Continuous improvement is essential to achieve accreditation.Recommendations: In preparation for ISO 15189 accreditation, a medical laboratory should focus on building a robust quality management system to ensure the competence of the whole laboratory.What this study adds: This study demonstrates the importance of strengthening quality management systems towards accreditation. To our best knowledge, this is the first report of ISO 15189 accreditation in a private non-profit research organisation in Mozambique.
 
Publisher AOSIS
 
Contributor TESA network (Trials of Excellence in Southern Africa) funded by the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP).
Date 2026-05-22
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — —
Format text/html application/epub+zip text/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/ajlm.v15i1.3153
 
Source African Journal of Laboratory Medicine; Vol 15, No 1 (2026); 8 pages 2225-2010 2225-2002
 
Language eng
 
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Rights Copyright (c) 2026 Delfino C. Vubil, Anelsio Cossa, Ergel Salvador, Miguel Bene, Geraldo Manhiça, Chenjerai Jairoce, Edson Mambuque, Lázaro Quimice, Eusébio V. Macete, Francisco Saute, Inacio Mandomando https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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