The partnership between the Medical Mission Institute Würzburg and Saint Joseph’s Catholic Hospital in Liberia dates back to 2015. The aim of the assisted project is to prevent the spread of multidrug-resistant organisms in three partner hospitals through better diagnostics and guidelines for prescribing antibiotics.
Problem: The risk posed by multidrug-resistant organisms in Liberia is underestimated. Hospitals rarely conduct microbiological tests on infected patients, significantly increasing the risk that diagnoses might be incorrect. If pathogens are not correctly identified and antibiotics used inappropriately, the result can be a spread of multidrug-resistant organisms.
Main activities: Managers attend courses on effective laboratory management. Two laboratory staff members spend several weeks at the Medical Mission Institute Würzburg, where they learn to better identify pathogens and to write reports on laboratory tests. The technical equipment in the laboratories is being renewed and strategies learned for dealing with pathogens.
Short-term results: There is to be a reduction in the incidence of multidrug-resistant organisms and patient safety is to be enhanced.
Long-term results: The targeted dialogue with other hospital laboratories in Liberia is to enhance patient safety throughout the country.