The SLMTA Hero Award

Hamida Nangosa, Quality Assurance Officer, Mulago National Referral Hospital, Clinical Laboratories, Ministry of Health, Uganda

Nominated by Patricia Akello, Laboratory Scientist/Mentor, East Africa Public Health Laboratory Networking Project, (EAPHLNP), CPHL, MOH, Uganda

Ms Nangosa Hamida is the Quality Assurance Officer for the three main laboratory units (Chemistry, Microbiology and Haematology) of Mulago National Referral Hospital, a position she has held for the last six years. Since June 2012 she has consistently demonstrated her leadership skills, professionalism, persistence and patience in her duties.

A clinical biochemist by training, Hamida has been instrumental in leading Mulago National Referral Hospital Clinical Laboratories through a successful SLMTA journey from zero to 5 stars as per the recently concluded EAPHLN peer SLIPTA assessment. To achieve this success, she effectively translated laboratory quality management knowledge to her team in a timely manner and also worked long hours with her team to ensure successful and timely completion of policies, procedures and reports; which created facility ownership of the SLMTA program.

She led her team to lobby for support from hospital management to have laboratory equipment serviced and calibrated on time, to ensure uninterrupted service delivery. She also initiated the laboratory-clinician interface with all hospital departments, which forum is now a routine activity and very well appreciated by laboratory users. Because of the laboratory’s achievements to-date through the SLMTA initiative, Mulago hospital management has expanded the laboratory’s strategies to other departments, which have also recently embarked on ISO certification and accreditation process.

I therefore with pleasure nominate Hamida Nangosa for the SLMTA Hero award.