Challenges That May Impact Achieving And Maintaining Accreditation In Clinical Laboratories In Zambia During The Covid-19 Pandemic

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) which was first reported in Wuhan City, China, has spread to many countries worldwide. It was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on 11th March, 2020 [1]. As of 12th January, 2021, a total of 89,707,115 cases and 1,940,352 deaths had been reported globally, while 28,596 cases and 471 deaths had been reported in Zambia [2]. A Quality Management System (QMS) can be defined as a coordinated set of activities to direct and control an organisation regarding quality. A laboratory QMS is cardinal for achieving desirable laboratory performance and assurance of good laboratory results [3]. Clinical laboratories in Zambia have been implementing laboratory QMS since 2010, and five (5) have attained ISO 15189 accreditation [4]. Implementing QMS in low resource settings such as Zambia presents with multiple challenges [5]. This has been compounded by the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic which has the potential to negate gains towards attaining and maintaining accreditation. Here we interrogate various challenges that may arise in achieving and maintaining laboratory accreditation amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and provide recommendations on possible mitigation measures.