The laboratory was inaugurated in February 2017, in the presence of the Director and Deputy Directors of the Battamburg Province Health Department; the hospital’s Director, Deputy Directors, and personnel; the Director of the Bureau of Medical Laboratory Services (BMLS) at the Ministry of Health; and the Head of the Mérieux Foundation in Cambodia.
This renovation was needed to address the growth in activity over the past six years
The microbiology laboratory was initially created in 2010, in the leading public hospital in Battambang Province (northwestern Cambodia), thanks to the support of the Mérieux Foundation and the World Health Organizatio.
From 2010 to 2016, the laboratory conducted more and more microbiology work, and the number of laboratory assistants also increased. It thus became necessary to expand the workspace and improve security.
The Mérieux Foundation collaborated with the Bureau of Medical Laboratory Services (BMLS) at the Ministry of Health, and after several discussions with partners from the laboratory network, particularly the Diagnostic Microbiology Development Program (DMDP), the decision was made to renovate the laboratory. It now covers 65 m2 and features:
- A media preparation room;
- An air chamber and small office for the biologist;
- A main microbiology room;
- A sterilization room;
- A patient waiting room outside the laborator.
In the future, the laboratory will become a training center specialized in microbiology
The laboratory is available for hospital use, currently analyzing around 15 microbiology samples per day. It also hosts internships to provide local trainings for lab technicians, and holds continuous training sessions as part of the laboratory network. These trainings have covered biosafety, quality control, and pathogen identification.
In the future, this laboratory will become a microbiology training center for laboratories in regions near Battambang Province, which will strengthen the region’s microbiological diagnosis capacity