ILAC News 38

Accreditation UpdateKenya Accreditation Service (KENAS)Celebrates World Accreditation Day (WAD)Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS), thesole National Accreditation Body (NAB)for Kenya and a statutory organizationunder the Ministry of Industrialization,celebrated the third World Accreditation Day(WAD) during the 29th World Congress ofBiomedical Laboratory Science.This was the first time this conference hasbeen held in Sub-Saharan Africa. The venuewas the Kenyatta International ConferenceCenter (KICC) in Nairobi, Kenya from 6 to10 June 2010. The conference was organizedjointly by the Association of Kenya MedicalLaboratory Scientific Officers (AKMLSO),the host and the International Federationof Biomedical Laboratory Science (IFBLS).IFBLS was founded in 1954 by Ms ElizabethPletscher.The purpose of this congress was to promoteexcellence in biomedical science, enhanceprofessional development, and providenetworking opportunities in research,education and business. The focus was onthe role of Biomedical Laboratory science inthe management of the global health burdenwith emphasis on HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria.KENAS was a key participant in the congress,having both an exhibition booth, and apaper which was presented by Doris MueniMengo from KENAS titled “Do doctorsuse laboratory results prior to treatment ofpatients?”. KENAS used the opportunity toorganize a symposium to elucidate the themeof this year’s WAD focusing on medical/clinical laboratory accreditation.The WAD was established three yearsago in 2008 under the auspices of theInternational Accreditation Forum (IAF) andthe International Laboratory AccreditationCooperation (ILAC), the umbrella bodies thatare globally responsible for accreditationactivities in the field of certification andinspection/laboratory testing respectively.This was the third WAD to be celebrated.The first WAD was celebrated in the year2008 and the theme was “Accreditationdeliveringglobal trust” while the secondone was celebrated in 2009 with the theme“competence”.The theme for this year was “GlobalAcceptance”.clinical results, goeshand in hand withthe InternationalAccreditation Forum(IAF) and InternationalLaboratoryAccreditation Cooperation (ILAC) principle of“tested once, accepted everywhere”.The big gathering comprised of delegatesthat are experts in the field of BiomedicalScience drawn from all over the world.KENAS took this opportunity to reach outto the laboratory scientists, first to increaseawareness, educate them and to outline thesignificance and benefits of medical/clinicallaboratory accreditation taking into accountthe requirements of customers (physicians/clinicians, patients) and applicable standardsparticularly ISO 15189:2007-MedicalLaboratories-Particular requirements forquality and competence as well as applicableregulatory requirements.The symposium was officiated by thePermanent Secretary of our parentMinistry of Industrialization, Prof John KLonyangapuo CBS, HSC who was representedby Ms Pamela A Dede, Deputy Directorof Industries. Other key representativeswere from the Ministry of Medical Services(MOMS), Ministry of Public Health andSanitation (MOPHS), Centre for DiseaseControl (CDC), A Global Healthcare PublicFoundation (AGHPF), Family HealthInternational (FHI), Pathcare Laboratories(K) Ltd, the private sector and donor supportpartners amongst many other partners in thehealth sector.The KENAS symposium took place between11.00 and 13.00. Participants in thisworld accreditation day symposium werebiomedical scientists who were present atthe congress and who chose to celebrate thisday with KENAS together with other keymedical/clinical laboratory stakeholders.The Director KENAS, Mr Sammy K Milgowelcomed the participants to the symposiumand gave a brief history of KENAS.Welcome remarks were made by Dr MosesNjue Head of the Department of Diagnosticand Forensic Sciences (DDFS) - MOMS,Mr Valentine Magero – A Laboratoryspecialist from Family Health International(FHI) - Africa Regional office, and Dr JaneMwangi from Centre for Disease Control andPrevention - Global AIDS Program (CDC-GAP) Kenya.Presentations were given by Dr KhadijahKasachoon from KENAS, who talked aboutGlobal acceptance for medical/clinicallaboratory results. Mr Eric Wakaria fromthe Human Quality Assessment Services(HUQAS) which has been accredited byKENAS as a Proficiency Testing (PT) providerfor medical/clinical laboratories gave apresentation on External Quality Assurance(EQA) programs in relation to accreditation.Mr Paul Okwach from Pathcare Laboratory(K) Ltd, a medical laboratory accredited bySANAS of South Africa, gave a presentationon the process of accreditation. Mr KevinOmondi, on behalf of Prof Kilian Songwe,the President of A Global Healthcare PublicFoundation (AGHPF) gave a presentationon WHO-AFRO Accreditation process usedas tool for strengthening laboratories andas a stepping stone towards ISO 15189accreditation of laboratories in Africa.Sammy K MilgoDirector-Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS),Kenya.Put simply with medical/clinical laboratoriesin mind – Global acceptance of medical/28 Issue 38 | October 2010Speakers at the KENAS symposium held during the 29th World Congress of Biomedical LaboratoryScience.