A few months ago, Sarah Riley discussed diagnosing disease in displaced populations. She says, “… being aware of the problem of limited access to diagnostic laboratory testing in refugee populations is a good start. We need to get a better understanding of the scope of the problem. We should be ready and able to provide specific recommendations for meeting diagnostic needs in these populations including most appropriate diagnostics…”
Dr. Riley’s post has stuck with me, and I wanted to know how I could help. While several organizations work with refugees worldwide, it’s unclear if any dedicate money to laboratories or diagnostics. Thankfully, there’s the ASCP Foundation‘s Global Health Fund. The GHF is dedicated to providing diagnostics, establishing laboratories, and training local personnel in countries where access to pathologists or medical laboratories is inadequate. If this sounds like something you’d like to support, you can do so here.
-Kelly Swails, MT(ASCP), is a laboratory professional, recovering microbiologist, and web editor for Lab Medicine.
Lablogatory 