Preservice laboratory education strengthening enhances sustainable laboratory workforce in Ethiopia
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RESEARCH
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Preservice laboratory education strengthening enhances sustainable laboratory workforce in Ethiopia Peter N Fonjungo1,8*, Yenew Kebede1, Wendy Arneson2, Derese Tefera1, Kedir Yimer1, Samuel Kinde3, Meseret Alem4, Waqtola Cheneke5, Habtamu Mitiku6, Endale Tadesse7, Aster Tsegaye3 and Thomas Kenyon1
Abstract Background: There is a severe healthcare workforce shortage in sub Saharan Africa, which threatens achieving the Millennium Development Goals and attaining an AIDS-free generation. The strength of a healthcare system depends on the skills, competencies, values and availability of its workforce. A well-trained and competent laboratory technologist ensures accurate and reliable results for use in prevention, diagnosis, care and treatment of diseases. Methods: An assessment of existing preservice education of five medical laboratory schools, followed by remedial intervention and monitoring was conducted. The remedial interventions included 1) standardizing curriculum and implementation; 2) training faculty staff on pedagogical methods and quality management systems; 3) providing teaching materials; and 4) procuring equipment for teaching laboratories to provide practical skills to complement didactic education. Results: A total of 2,230 undergraduate students from the five universities benefitted from the standardized curriculum. University of Gondar accounted for 252 of 2,230 (11.3%) of the students, Addis Ababa University for 663 (29.7%), Jimma University for 649 (29.1%), Haramaya University for 429 (19.2%) and Hawassa University for 237 (10.6%) of the students. Together the universities graduated 388 and 312 laboratory technologists in 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 academic year, respectively. Practical hands-on training and experience with well-equipped laboratories enhanced and ensured skilled, confident and competent laboratory technologists upon graduation. Conclusions: Strengthening preservice laboratory education is feasible in resource-limited settings, and emphasizing its merits (ample local capacity, country ownership and sustainability) provides a valuable source of competent laboratory technologists to relieve an overstretched healthcare system. Keywords: Preservice education, PEPFAR, Curriculum, Standardization, Laboratory workforce strengthening, Training, Sustainability
Background The strength of a healthcare system, in addition to physical infrastructure, depends on the skills, competencies, values and availability of its workforce. In sub Saharan Africa, there is a severe shortage and imbalance in its workforce that poses a major threat to achieving the * Correspondence: [email protected] 1 Division of Global HIV/AIDS, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 8 Division of Global HIV/AIDS, Center for Global Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, USA Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
Millennium Development Goals [1]. Due to this critical shortage, healthcare workers are overworked and healthcare
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