The House Committee on Healthcare Services has urged the Medical Laboratory and Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) to check the proliferation of substandard laboratory equipment in the country and ensure that laboratory test results from Nigeria are acceptable anywhere in the world.

Chairman of the Committee, Amos Gwmana, who stated this when members of the committee visited the council on an oversight function on Monday in Abuja, said Nigeria should not be a dumping site for substandard lab equipment because this leads to diagnostic errors.

Magaji noted that the MLSCN is saddled with the responsibility of accrediting laboratory equipment, stressing that any laboratory equipment imported into the country must be certified to be of international standard, as doctors depend on lab results for treatment, and if the results are faulty, it will lead to wrong treatment.

He said, “Medical lab results from Nigeria should be accepted anywhere in the world, and if a sample is investigated in the country and taken to any part of the world, we should have the same result so that the results here will be credible. We are tired of Nigerians traveling abroad for medical check-ups which we can do here. We need to ensure that lab results from Nigeria are credible and reliable.

“We don’t want Nigeria to be a dumping site for substandard lab equipment because this leads to diagnostic errors. This agency is saddled with the responsibility of accrediting laboratory equipment. Any laboratory equipment that is imported into the country must be certified to be of international standard because doctors depend on lab results for treatment, and if the results are faulty, it will lead to wrong treatment.”

Magaji noted that the practice of medicine is fast advancing, emphasizing the need to ensure the use of standard equipment to get accurate results, and also stressed the need for the council to test reagents used in labs across the country.

He observed that Nigerians embark on medical tourism due to the low confidence they have in the country’s health system, adding that there are issues of medical errors and wrong results, and asked the council to rise up to its responsibility.

The lawmaker highlighted the need to strengthen the medical lab scientist workforce and ensure that the council has offices across the country to enable it to effectively deliver on its mandate.

He observed that the council is very crucial in ensuring quality healthcare delivery and the well-being of Nigerians and must be accorded priority attention.

Gwmana also emphasized the need to look into the Act establishing the council, which was last amended in 2003, to see if there is a need for a review.

He stressed the need to ensure that the council is enrolled in the trade portal immediately and asked the management to reach out to the House whenever there is a delay or bottlenecks.

Earlier, the MLSCN Registrar, Dr. Tosan Irabor, said that the council was developing modalities to collaborate with all states to strengthen monitoring efforts aimed at eliminating quacks from the profession, getting people trained on biosafety, and liaising with the American CDC to certify the center.

He told the committee that the council has fewer than 250 staff members, which is grossly inadequate for a council saddled with enormous responsibility.