Laboratory council assures Nigerians of reliable test results, patient safety

The Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria, Dr. Donald Ofili, has assured Nigerians that the council will continue to guarantee reliable laboratory test results, strengthen patient safety and sustain reforms aimed at deepening public confidence in the country’s healthcare system.

Ofili gave the assurance in Abuja while receiving the leadership of the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria and elders of the profession during a courtesy visit on Thursday in Abuja.

According to him, the council remains committed to strengthening quality assurance and laboratory regulation to ensure Nigerians receive accurate diagnostic services that support effective treatment and better health outcomes.

“We will continue to guarantee reliable laboratory test results, strengthen patient safety and sustain reforms that will deepen public confidence in our healthcare system,” he said.

The Registrar described his appointment by President Bola Tinubu as the beginning of a new chapter for the council and the medical laboratory profession. He expressed appreciation to the President, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Pate, and the Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Salako, for the confidence reposed in him.

Ofili said reconciliation efforts initiated by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare had restored harmony within the profession, creating an enabling environment for the council to effectively discharge its statutory responsibility of regulating medical laboratory practice and improving healthcare outcomes.

He described the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria and the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria as complementary institutions with a shared mandate under the law establishing the council, stressing the need for sustained collaboration in advancing the profession.

“The council and the association must continue to work together in advancing the profession,” he said, while appealing to elders of the profession to continue providing guidance and support as the new leadership consolidates ongoing reforms.

The Registrar also pledged to consolidate the council’s achievements in laboratory accreditation and regulation, noting that Nigeria had attained international recognition as a global accreditation body.

“We will sustain reforms that will further position Nigeria’s medical laboratory practice among the best in the world,” he added.

Earlier, the National President of the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria, Dr. Casmir Ifeanyi, described Ofili’s appointment as a well-deserved recognition of competence and a major boost for Nigeria’s healthcare system.

He said Ofili had demonstrated exceptional leadership while serving in an acting capacity following the death of the immediate past Registrar and Chief Executive Officer, Professor Tosan Erhabor, adding that medical laboratory scientists across the country welcomed his substantive appointment.

Describing the new Registrar as “a square peg in a square hole,” Ifeanyi said Ofili had already recorded significant milestones, including securing the council’s admission into the Global Accreditation Cooperation, a development that gives international recognition to laboratories accredited by the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria.

According to him, the achievement, alongside the council’s membership of the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation, empowers the council to accredit laboratories within and outside Nigeria while ensuring they meet globally recognised standards.

Ifeanyi noted that medical laboratory services account for more than 70 per cent of clinical decisions, patient management, disease surveillance and public health planning, underscoring the critical role of accurate laboratory diagnosis in healthcare delivery.

He expressed confidence that Ofili would strengthen quality assurance, laboratory regulation and patient safety across the country, pledging the association’s full support for the new leadership.

The Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria is the statutory agency responsible for regulating medical laboratory practice, accrediting laboratories and licensing medical laboratory scientists in Nigeria. In recent years, the council has intensified efforts to align Nigeria’s laboratory accreditation system with international standards, a move regarded as critical to improving diagnostic accuracy, disease surveillance and overall healthcare delivery. Accurate laboratory investigations are estimated to influence more than 70 per cent of clinical decisions, making quality laboratory services central to effective patient care.