By Justina Auta

Stakeholders in the health sector on Tuesday, identified the critical role of self-testing and Point-of-Care In Vitro Diagnostics (POC IVDs) in enhancing disease diagnosis and control in Nigeria.

The stakeholders made the call at a one-day summit in Abuja tagged, “Community Engagement in Diagnosis of ATM and Hepatitis in Nigeria: The Place of Self-Test and Point-of-Care In-Vitro Diagnostics.”

The convener of the summit, Dr Ali Onoja, Chief Executive Officer, African Health Project, highlighted the transformative potential of self-testing and POC IVDs in bridging healthcare gaps.

According to him, empowering communities with self-testing and POC IVDs will significantly enhance disease surveillance, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention efforts.

He disclosed that the African Health Project has conducted operational research on the preferences and acceptability of blood-based and oral-based HIV self-testing in Nigeria.

He explained that the study revealed high acceptability and accuracy for both testing methods, with significant preference variations across different states.

He identified key recommendations from the study to include a comprehensive education campaign, enhanced training for healthcare workers, streamlined testing procedures, and increased accessibility and affordability of self-testing kits.

These measures, according to him, will bolster Nigeria’s healthcare system and ensure it meets the needs of all Nigerians, especially the most at-risk and hard-to-reach populations.

“Let us harness the power of self-test and POC IVDs, alongside community engagement, to create a healthier, more resilient Nigeria.

“This summit, therefore, underscored the collective commitment to advancing healthcare delivery and achieving global health targets,” he said.

Also, Dr Chigozie Ujam, Deputy Director, National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), commended the African Health Project and other organisations for organising the summit.

According to him, promoting HIV self-testing will serve as part of the broader strategy to combat infectious diseases in the country.

He said that NACA was working with stakeholders to create enabling environments for initiatives that could get many people on treatment, beginning with testing, treatment, and achieving viral suppression.

“This is important in achieving the global 95-95-95 targets, which aim to ensure that 95 per cent of people living with HIV know their status, 95 per cent of those diagnosed receive sustained antiretroviral therapy, and 95 per cent of those receiving therapy achieve viral suppression.

“This target cannot be achieved if people do not test.

“Part of testing is not just what we do in the community but enabling people to test themselves in the convenience of their own homes through HIV self-testing,” he added.

One of the resource persons, Mr Manason Garkuwa, urged Nigerians to be wary of “window period”, the time between HIV infection and when a test can detect it.

Garkuwa stated this in a paper entitled, “Acute HIV Infection and its Impact on Controlling the HIV Epidemic in Nigeria.”

He said: “People within the window period may unknowingly spread the virus because they don’t know they are infected and therefore, are not under treatment.

“However, new technologies are emerging that can narrow this window period, allowing us to detect infections sooner and prevent further transmission.”

Also speaking, Mr Paulinus Ofutalu, Head of In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) Department at the Medical Lab Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN), emphasized the need for quality test kits for effective disease diagnostics and surveillance.

Ofutalu, who is also the Lab Manager at the National Reference Laboratory, Yaba, Lagos, urged medical practitioners on compliance to regulatory requirements.

He particularly called on manufacturers and importers of IVDs to adhere strictly to regulatory standards.

He also urged owners of laboratories across the country to ensure they procure test kits with the MLSCN IVD listing number, which serves as evidence of quality checks.

“Whether as Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) or implementing partners, whenever they procure test kits, they should look for the IVD listing number as proof of compliance with quality standards,” he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the summit brought together policymakers, healthcare professionals, NGOs and community leaders to explore innovative healthcare solutions. (NAN)

Edited by Philip Yatai