Patients should seek medical laboratory confirmations before medications – Laboratory Scientist

 

Mr. Moses Kofi Woli, A Consultant Medical Laboratory Scientist who doubles as the Bono East Regional Chairman of the Ghana Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists has said that hospitals must ensure patients are made to pass through adequate laboratory examinations before medication.

Speaking to Kwaku Mensah Abrampa in an interview on High Radio, He admitted that most health centres and facilities within the rural areas lack laboratory units which makes it difficult for the health professionals to discharge their duties of which he said measures are on course to secure labs for those health centres in the rural areas with the help of stakeholders and government to boost quality healthcare delivery.

He insisted that despite the laboratory unit challenges being faced in most health facilities, the most effective and efficient medical practice is to ensure patients pass through the needed laboratory investigations before prescriptions are made which according to him will facilitate effective healthcare delivery.

Mr. Woli Moses stressed the need the undergo laboratory investigations before medication explaining that there are a lot of ailments with the same or similar signs and symptoms which makes the laboratory investigation necessary before medical prescription to ensure the right medicine is prescribed for the right ailment.

He emphasized that laboratory scientists in the world aimed at ensuring healthcare delivery is moved from presumptive treatment to evidence base where health professionals need to know the exact cause of an ailment through laboratory investigations before any medication is provided stressing that laboratory is a pivot around which health evolve in the world because about 70 to 80 percent of medical decisions taken at the hospital are base on laboratory reports.

He noted that most medications without evidence or laboratory report have serious side effects hence the need to follow lab reports for effective healthcare delivery.

Mr. Moses Kofi Woli advised health workers to offer better and more promising treatment to patients because the mandate of health workers is to do what will benefit humanity and not otherwise.

He added that patients are also entitled to rights and freedom and so they must live within those rights and must not give way for them to be intimidated because of health conditions they may find themselves in divulging that patients must open up and demand quality health service whenever they visit the hospital.

 

Story by Kwaku Mensah Abrampa