An overall increase in volume of testing at the Hôpital Sacré Coeur clinical lab reclassifies the operation from a low volume to a medium volume lab. The majority of the tests conducted onsite are chemistry tests that require the use of specific equipment. The analyzer system that has been in place since 2001 uses dry slide chemistry technology which is more expensive than the new technology of wet chemistry.
Complicating matters further, HSC received notice from the manufacturer that effective December, 2014 technical support would no longer be available and the reagents used would no longer be manufactured. Making matters even dimmer, two of the four chemistry analyzers in use had been taken out of service permanently and the remaining duo showed increased signs of failure. Clearly, the laboratory constitutes a critical center for the functioning of the hospital. The purchases of two modern chemistry analyzers became a critical priority.
Thanks to a very generous donation from The W. O’Neill Foundation, CRUDEM was able to purchase two chemistry analyzer sets and install them at Hôpital Sacré Coeur.
CRUDEM worked with Worldwide Laboratory Improvements (WWLI) to address this need. WWLI is a Christian non-profit U.S. corporation which specializes in assisting medical laboratory facilities in mission hospitals and clinics in developing countries. Their CEO had visited the HSC laboratory and assessed the need and logistics. As a result, the ChemWell-T (Awareness Technology, Palm City, FL) was identified as an instrument that would not only replace the outdated units, but would provide for enhanced monitoring and maintenance through web based functionality. Additionally, the ChemWell-T is ideally suited to the environment of Haiti; having a user base throughout Central/South America and India. In fact, WWLI had already installed units in Ghana and Cameroon with great success.
The HSC laboratory staff now sleeps easier knowing that an extraordinary Maryland donor has secured the instruments needed to perform critical diagnostic tests for their patients.
