Maputo — Mozambican Health Minister Alexandre Manguele on Wednesday re-inaugurated the country's main tuberculosis laboratory, remodelled and equipped with funding of over 1.5 million US dollars, provided by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
The National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory is located within the grounds of Maputo Central Hospital, and is now equipped with the most recent technology for diagnosing tuberculosis, including drug resistant tuberculosis.
Speaking during the inauguration ceremony, Manguele said the laboratory will undertake specialist and reference diagnoses, and provide continual education for laboratory technicians. It will ensure quality control for microscope diagnosis, and surveillance for multi-drug resistant strains of the disease.
"Making this laboratory operational is a further determinant step for ensuring that the country's health policies are based on evidence generated nationally", he added.
Manguele warned that, in order to ensure sustainable growth in laboratory activities in Mozambique over the coming years, the country needs continual investments in human resources, equipment, up-to-date technologies, infrastructures and systems.
It was immediately necessary, he said, to strengthen the team working at the national reference laboratory, and to ensure regional tuberculosis laboratories in Beira and Nampula became operational,
The rate of prevalence of tuberculosis in Mozambique is 504 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, and Mozambique is in 19th position in the 22 countries that still have a high tuberculosis burden.
Data from 2007/2008 indicate that 3.5 per cent of new tuberculosis cases in Mozambique are caused by the multi-drug resistant strains of the bacterium. "To these statistics, which are alarming enough in themselves, we must add the fact that the tuberculosis epidemic runs in tandem with the HIV epidemic", said Manguele. "The association between HIV and tuberculosis has already become one of the major challenges for public health in southern Africa".
For his part, Todd Amani, Director of the USAID office in Mozambique, said he hoped the laboratory would contribute to improving the provision of public health services.
"Strengthening institutions such as the National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory will help improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis, and increase the links from home care to hospital care, thus reducing the mortality and morbidity caused by tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and other related diseases", said Amani.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201101270178.html
The National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory is located within the grounds of Maputo Central Hospital, and is now equipped with the most recent technology for diagnosing tuberculosis, including drug resistant tuberculosis.
Speaking during the inauguration ceremony, Manguele said the laboratory will undertake specialist and reference diagnoses, and provide continual education for laboratory technicians. It will ensure quality control for microscope diagnosis, and surveillance for multi-drug resistant strains of the disease.
"Making this laboratory operational is a further determinant step for ensuring that the country's health policies are based on evidence generated nationally", he added.
Manguele warned that, in order to ensure sustainable growth in laboratory activities in Mozambique over the coming years, the country needs continual investments in human resources, equipment, up-to-date technologies, infrastructures and systems.
It was immediately necessary, he said, to strengthen the team working at the national reference laboratory, and to ensure regional tuberculosis laboratories in Beira and Nampula became operational,
The rate of prevalence of tuberculosis in Mozambique is 504 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, and Mozambique is in 19th position in the 22 countries that still have a high tuberculosis burden.
Data from 2007/2008 indicate that 3.5 per cent of new tuberculosis cases in Mozambique are caused by the multi-drug resistant strains of the bacterium. "To these statistics, which are alarming enough in themselves, we must add the fact that the tuberculosis epidemic runs in tandem with the HIV epidemic", said Manguele. "The association between HIV and tuberculosis has already become one of the major challenges for public health in southern Africa".
For his part, Todd Amani, Director of the USAID office in Mozambique, said he hoped the laboratory would contribute to improving the provision of public health services.
"Strengthening institutions such as the National Tuberculosis Reference Laboratory will help improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis, and increase the links from home care to hospital care, thus reducing the mortality and morbidity caused by tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and other related diseases", said Amani.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201101270178.html
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