AFRO-NETS> Laboratory Diagnosis of Infectious Diseases

[BRTI <brti@samara.co.zw>]

Laboratory Diagnosis of Infectious Diseases
-------------------------------------------

Interpretation and Quality Control of Laboratory Diagnosis of Infec-
tious Diseases

26 April - 8 May, 1999
Harare, Zimbabwe

A short course offered by the Biomedical Research and Training Insti-
tute (BRTI), Harare, Zimbabwe

Rationale:

Diagnosis and control of infectious diseases requires information 
from clinical epidemiology and laboratory investigations. These ap-
proaches are usually applied by different individuals, but there is a 
need to integrate the concepts in order to achieve optimal use of 
available resources and information.

We offer a new short course, targeting laboratory and clinical scien-
tists and technologists, that aims to review and clarify the contri-
bution laboratory diagnostics can make in a given clinical and epide-
miological setting. The growing recognition of the need for quality 
assurance in all areas of health service will also be addressed, with 
special attention to quality control systems for laboratory science.

These concepts will be presented using as examples infectious dis-
eases common in Southern Africa, in particular on sexually transmit-
ted diseases, tuberculosis and malaria.

Objectives:

After the course, the participants should:
- understand the role of laboratory tests as an aid to diagnosis;
- understand principles behind lab procedures that aid in diagnosis;
- be familiar with different methods to standardise laboratory tests;
- understand how normal values are established and used in laboratory
  tests;
- understand the importance of negative and positive controls and how
  they are used;
- be able to recognise invalid results;
- understand the principles of quality control and quality assurance
  in laboratory tests;
- be aware of different ways of training laboratory staff to inter-
  pret laboratory test.

Approach:

The program will include lectures, discussions, work group sessions 
and practicals, given by experienced laboratory scientists, clini-
cians and epidemiologists. Each morning will begin with a state of 
the art lecture, related to the topics to be covered during the day. 
Participants will be asked to contribute from their own experience in 
discussions and exercises, and will have the opportunity for hands-on 
activity in the laboratory sessions ranging from simple microscopy to 
cutting-edge nucleic acid techniques such as PCR and the relevance of 
the sophisticated techniques in the context of laboratories in South-
ern Africa will be critically appraised.

Course Fees

The course fee is US $ 1,000 which covers all lectures and practical 
sessions, the course book, transportation between lodgings and course 
venue, excursions, teas and coffees on the course days.

In addition, the participants will need at least US $ 75 per day for 
lodging and other expenses during the period of their stay in Harare 
as well as travel expenses. These funds can be administered through 
BRTI.

Applications:

Interested persons are requested to send a letter of application, in-
cluding a two-page curriculum vitae, mentioning their current situa-
tion and particular interests. A statement from their employer indi-
cating that they will be released for the period of the course must 
also be included. In the letter, the source of funding to cover the 
costs must be sent to the course administrator. The applications can 
be sent by post, fax or e-mail to the following address:

Training Programmes Manager
The Biomedical Research and Training Institute (BRTI)
P.O. Box CY 1753, Causeway
Harare
Zimbabwe
Fax +263-4-723-997
mailto:brti@samara.co.zw
or
mailto:brti@healthnet.zw

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