Leading the WayAfricabio Trains Lab Techs

In late 2014 Africabio E nterprises Inc. held a meeting withthe first team of technicians involved in the E bola responseeffort, led by Liberia's Ministry of Health. T his initial trainingopportunity was intended to renew and build the confidence of laboratory technicians inLiberia in the wake of the deadly E bola virus disease (E V D) outbreak; to share requisiteknowledge and skills to safeguard lab workers against infection as they delivered servicesto Liberia; to train lab staff on infection control measures on E V D; to train lab staff on thecorrect use of personal protective equipment (P P E s); to train lab staff on E V D samplecollection, packaging, and transportation; and to discuss challenges facing labs and labworkers and share experiences. T hese were the few brave lab technicians who had chosen to work on the front lines, whenmost technicians had abandoned health facilities due to fear of losing their lives followingthe death of six colleagues. Moreover, these technicians worked diligently although theresponse to E bola was riddled with inefficient logistics, sample collection errors, minimalP P E s, lab data that lacked purpose, and a lack of reliable communication proceduresbetween facilities.

Africabio Hosts Lab Week CelebrationFirst Conference of its Kind in Liberia

Africabio E nterprises Inc. organized and hosted the first Medical Laboratory P rofessionalsW eek conference in Liberia's history, called C elebrate Lab W eek 2015, to bring neededattention to the state of diagnostics in the country. T he event brought together more than150 attendees, including lab technicians, Ministry of Health staff, and partners, to discussthe issues critical to building an environment where diagnostics are recognized as essentialto clinical care and research. Dr. F rancis K ateh, Liberia's chief medical officer designate, opened the event byencouraging technicians to "own the willingness to learn and grow their craft." T he W orldHealth Organization (W HO) sponsored the opening plenary. W HO representative V ictorDelrio thanked Africabio for championing the discussion on improving diagnostics inLiberia's health care system.

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Medical Laboratory P rofessionals W eek is an annual, worldwide celebration of the labprofessionals and pathologists who play a vital role in every aspect of health care.

Africabio CEOHonored at NPHRLEvent Lab Techs Also Recognized asLiberia Declared Ebola-Free

S hortly after Liberia was declared E bola-free, Africabio E nterpris es Inc. C E OC andace E as tman was recognized at aprogram honoring E bola res pons e laboratory s taff who worked at the National P ublic HealthR eference Laboratory (NP HR L), the only Liberian-owned lab in the country. Hos ted by the U.S .Army Medical R es earch Ins titute of Infectious Dis eas es and National Ins titute of Health lab team,the event highlighted E as tman's continued involvement in ens uring that the s kills , preparation, ands afety procedures of lab technicians were updated during the outbreak. F ortoma B olay, director of the Liberian Ins titute for B iomedical R es earch (LIB R ), where NP HR L ishous ed, thanked partners for their collaboration and hailed the technicians who worked unders tres s ful conditions for almos t a year. Als o in attendance was Dr. Michelle A. J effers on, whos erved as the operations officer-in-charge for the E bola Outbreak R es pons e National R eference Labon the U.S . s ide for the pas t four months . "Today, we take a moment to honor thos e Liberian lab technologis ts and NP HR L s taff who haveworked behind the s cenes proces s ing the thous ands of s amples which provided the health careworkers and epidemiologis ts the important confirmed E bola diagnos es that only they could do," s hes aid. "W e s how our appreciation for their dedication and s elfles s s ervice to their country as we als ocelebration Liberia becoming E bola-free."

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During the event, one of the technicians remarked on the growth of the NP HR L, remembering whenit was only one room with s canty equipment and hous ed at the J ohn F . K ennedy Medical C enter in2008. Lab s ervices in Liberia have been s low to evolve; even now, mos t people who can afford theexpens e travel to neighboring countries or the U.S . for the mos t bas ic diagnos tic tes ts .

P ictured above are Lawrence F akoli III (LIB R ), J os iah S . George (NR L), Aaron Momolu (NR L),F ahn Taweh (NR L), and V era Y atta W alker (NR L). Other s taff as well as s enior medical lab technicians /technologis ts who participated in the E bolavirus res pons e at the National Diagnos tic Unit included J erry G . Daboi, facility operationsmanager; J ohn B . Dogba, quality manager; Alfred Nyuma, field coordinator; Nels on B errian; HenryLangford; F rancis Mulbah; K erkula Mulbah; Gertrude J eh-Mulbah; Arthur B rown; and S engbe OpatiNyilah, laboratory profes s ionals . C ounty Diagnos tic S upervis ors include: Gayduoba F lomo, Monts errado C ounty; Thomas B arnd,Margibi C ounty; Mus tipha S enes ie, B omi C ounty; S aturday Quellie, B ong C ounty; Mark S ays ay,Lofa C ounty; Andrew S amolu, Gbarpolu C ounty; R os ches ter Gaye, S inoe C ounty; S harty K .S andy, R iver C es s C ounty; Quans eh Gbemie, Nimba C ounty; Albert S unh, Grand Gedeh C ounty;R oger P arker, R iver Gee C ounty; Is aac Gbapawea, Grand B as s a C ounty; George S mith, MarylandC ounty; David V es eley, Grand K ru C ounty; and E dwin B ull, Grand C ape Mount C ounty. Africabio, together with Liberia, celebrate thes e lab profes s ionals and the es s ential roles theyplayed during the health cris is .

Private Sector Marketability A New Direction for Liberia as AfricabioCEO Attends Biotech Conference

C andace E astman, C E O of Africabio E nterprises Inc., will attend the B iotechnologyIndustry Organization (B IO) 2015 C onvention along with Dr. F rancis K ateh, deputy ministerand chief medical officer of Liberia, who will be featured in two sessions under theE merging Opportunities in Global Markets track. B IO covers the spectrum of life-science innovations and application areas. Drug discovery,biomanufacturing, genomics, biofuels, nanotechnology, and cell therapy are just a few ofthe industries that will be represented at the convention. K ateh and E astman's attendanceis driven in part by the need to develop an improved public health care system in countrieslike Liberia, as well as the need for a private sector that will use lessons learned to supporta national response to any epidemic. In a donor-driven environment, underdevelopedcountries like Liberia need to increase their marketability for private-sector developmentthrough local and foreign partnerships. T he creation of mechanisms that promote researchfocused on unmet needs in diagnostics, vaccines, and drugs is also critical.

C ontact: C andace E as tman, C E OAfrica Market and Inves tor R elations : 12th S treet & P ayne Avenue, S inkorMonrovia, Liberia, W . AfricaTel: +1 231.777.112.465 U.S and E U Inves tor R elations : info@ aeiglobal.com

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