A Hazard management workshop has been held for selected courier riders and laboratory personnel in the Northern and Greater Accra regions ahead of the SRS piloting study. This was aimed to build their capacities to ensure compliance with safe practices in sample pick-up and transportation
Hazards are anything that has the potential to cause damage or an adverse effect on the health of humans, animals and the environment. It is therefore expedient to control or manage them so as to reduce their occurrence.
The workshop covered six modules such as Steps in Hazard Management, Sample Packaging and Associated Risks, Managing Spillage during Sample Transportation, Proper use of PPE, Epidemic Prone Infectious Agents and their likely Hazards, Principles of Biosafety and Biosafety with practical and video demonstrations. This was followed with Discussions on the various reporting tools.
The Northern region training was held at the NIM Avenue hotel in Tamale on the 4th July 2022 which pulled twenty-seven personnel from the various selected facilities whereas the Greater Accra Training was held at the Erata Hotel in Accra on the 7th July 2022 which had thirty-two personnel in attendance from the various pilot sites in the region.
Resource persons included Mr Abass Abdul- Karim (Head of the Tamale Public Health Laboratory) and Mr Daron Atsu Agboyie (Safety Officer, Tamale Public Health Laboratory) for the Northern Region training and Dr. Kofi Bonney (Senior Research Fellow, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, University of Ghana, Accra) and Dr. Godfred Acheampong (Programs Coordinator, Centre for Health System Strengthening) for the Greater Accra Region training.
Dr Abdulai Braimah (Deputy Director, Clinical Care) was present at the Northern Region training and highlighted on the importance of the training to the current project and even for the routine activities at the various facilities. The Greater Accra Regional Health Directorate also had very key persons attending the training including the Deputy Director, Public Health, the Regional Biomedical Scientist, the Regional Transport Manager, the Regional TB Focal Person, the Regional HIV Coordinator. These individuals from the regional directorate served as key facilitators for the training. Another key person present for the trainings was the Global Health Security Agenda Advisor, Dr Bernard Nkrumah.
Participants were evaluated through a pre-test that is before the start of the course and after the course was completed. Certificate presentations were made to all individuals who partook in the training.
The Sample referral pilot study is scheduled to take-off mid- July to September 2022.
