Guinea

Access to diagnosis

As part of the LAB-NET project, which aimed to improve the monitoring of hemorrhagic fevers in Guinea, we worked with the health authorities to make an inventory of the country’s laboratories.

In parallel to this, the LABOGUI project, with support from the Agence française de Développement, began in 2017. Its aim is to support the implementation of a national clinical diagnostics policy in three areas: improving the institutional framework, strengthening the 30 hospital laboratories in the region and increasing the professional level of practices. Quality control and external quality assessment activities have been implemented. Thanks to the presence of technical assistants in the 8 regions of Guinea, training and coaching sessions have been conducted. Renovation work, water supply and solar energy supply also constitute the project. In 2020 and 2021, additional resources were allocated to LABOGUI’s activities in order to contribute to the response to the COVID19 pandemic through the reinforcement of equipment and consumables, the establishment of a molecular biology platform in the region and training to strengthen the capacities of laboratory workers.

REDISSE

Guinea is part of the REDISSE Project (Regional Disease Surveillance Systems Enhancement) to improve disease surveillance system. Funded by the World Bank through the West African Health Organization, the project aims to reinforce health district laboratories’ capacities in the 15 ECOWAS countries, in order to:

• Bolster the laboratory diagnosis and confirmation skills of laboratory managers
• Improve epidemiological surveillance and the response capacity of district laboratories

With the Centre for International Cooperation in Health and Development (CCISD), we were mandated to reinforce health districts’ integrated disease surveillance capacities.

RESAOLAB

Guinea is one of the 7 country members of the West African Network of clinical laboratories (RESAOLAB) created by the Mérieux Foundation and the ministries of health of participating countries. As part of this network, Guinea participates annually in training, laboratory supervision, quality assurance and external quality assessment. The Center for Continuing Education of Laboratory Personnel and the National Directorate of Laboratories financed by the RESAOLAB project, were inaugurated in 2018, in the presence of Mr. Alain Mérieux and the President of the Republic of Guinea.
We also support the National School of Health in Kindia, via an equipment grant.

Enhancing research capabilities

Following the COVID-19 epidemic, we took part in the NOSO-COR project, a prospective non-interventional hospital-based study whose objective is to describe and document cases of COVID-19, nosocomial transmission in hospitals and infection prevention and control practices and policies in hospitals. In Guinea, this study is implemented at the National Institute of Public Health and the University Hospital of Conakry. 

Support for mothers and children

We managed the construction of the laboratory at the Mother and Child Hospital in Coronthie, Conakry, as well as its equipment and the training of health personnel. We continue to support this laboratory by participating in the purchase of reagents and equipment and in the installation of the drug storage area.