Laboratory Guild tasks health practitioners on digitalisation, collaboration

The Guild of Medical Laboratory Directors (GMLD), Lagos State Branch, has called on health practitioners to embrace digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence (AI) for improved healthcare delivery.

The GMLD Chairman, Mr Adekoya Julius, made the call at the 2025 Annual Scientific Conference of the Association on Wednesday in Lagos.

The conference has the them: “Transforming Medical Laboratories For 21st Century: Innovation For A New Era In Healthcare”.

Julius explained the importance of AI, Information technology and digitalisation in advancing healthcare delivery.

He also urged the health practitioners, particularly the laboratory scientists to continually develop their skills and be abreast with new developments in the profession.

He listed the benefits of digitalisation to include enhanced productivity, reduction of risks, reduced costs, fast and timely delivery, increased efficiency, reduced workloads among others.

“The world is evolving; AI and digitalisation not only improves clinical outcomes; they create room for efficiency.

“So, let’s come to together to leverage digitalisation for optimum growth and development of the Nigeria healthcare system.

“We, therefore, appealed to our regulatory partners – the Medical Laboy Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) and Lagos State Blood Transfusion Services (LSBTS) and Health Facilities Monitoring and Accreditation Agency (HEFAMAA) to see inspections as an opportunity to monitor and build capacity,” he said.

The GMLD Chairman reiterated commitment of the Guild to support every member who desires to rise from survival mode to standards of global excellence.

The Head, Department of Laboratory Services, College of Medicine University of Lagos, Prof. Kolawole Oyedeji, called for collaboration among the healthcare practitioners to advance the healthcare delivery system.

Oyedeji emphasised the need to foster collaborations among the public health practitioners and private health practitioners for a remarkable development in the health system.

According to him, the practitioners should ensure they are able to make fast diagnostics; personalised treatments and better access to information.

He called for increased awareness about the new innovation era- Information Technology (IT) in the practice of laboratory science, stressing the need for every laboratory service outfit to have an IT department.

“So. the best thing now is for us to go digital. What this means is that we want to move away from mushroom -compartmentalised diagnosis to a complete collaborated and ability to interact laboratories with the patients being the focus.

“Hence, the need for a hand check and collaboration among the health practitioners for the integration of advanced technologies, automation and data analytics; leading to precision medicine and improved patient outcome,” he said.

The conference featured remarks by different guests of honour and different presentations by many organisations and laboratory services outfits.

In her remarks, the special guest of honour, Mrs Vivian Ihechu, decried that many health situations in the country have been mismanaged due to defects in the laboratory systems.

Ihechu, also the President, Health Writers Association of Nigeria (HEWAN), said some of these challenges included: a shortage of skilled personnel, inadequate infrastructure, limited resources, among others.

According to her, medical laboratories remain pivotal in healthcare delivery systems, providing essential diagnostic services, adding that in spite their key relevance, , medical laboratories were challenged especially in Nigeria.

“Insufficient funding, inadequate staffing, and limited access to training and professional development opportunities hinder the ability of medical laboratories to provide high-quality services.

“To address most of these challenges, it has become essential to transform medical laboratories in Nigeria.

‘Transforming medical laboratories in Nigeria requires a concerted effort from all stakeholders; innovation, professionalism, collaboration and strategic investment and partnerships become essential,” Ihechu said.

The Chairman Board of Fellows, Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria, Mr Bona Nelmadim, called on the government to intensify efforts toward provision of state-of-the-heart infrastructures and conducive environment needed to advance the nation’s healthcare system.

Nelmadim noted that the government have vital roles to play in ensuring that the health system embrace transformative digitalisation.