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ACLSB decries selection of non-med tech for Baylor training

GeneralACLSB decries selection of non-med tech for Baylor training

Belize City, Wed, Sept. 15, 2021– The Association of Clinical Laboratory Science of Belize (ACLSB) has issued a statement that takes issue with the Ministry of Health and Wellness’s (MOHW) selection of a person who is not a laboratory technician, and who is categorized as a “seasonal worker,” for the receipt of specialized training in gene sequencing at the Baylor College of Medicine — training that they say would be most useful if given to one of the laboratory technicians in our medical labs who are carrying out Covid-19 testing seemingly non-stop at this point in time.

The awardee, according to the ACLSB release, is Ms. Kaylyn Habet, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience but is neither a public officer nor a contract worker for the ministry. The ACLSB statement further indicates that the awardee has no practical training in a medical laboratory and only joined the Health Ministry’s COVID-19 testing efforts two months ago.

The association’s assertion that the awardee was not an appropriate recipient of the opportunity to receive such specialized, and critical, training is further bolstered by the fact that, although the NHI program had recommended her for a Medical Technologist II post at the Central Medical Lab, her application was rejected because she lacked the requisite qualifications.

In their release, the ACLSB states, “We, the Association of Clinical Laboratory Science of Belize, demand from the MOHW fair and transparent selection of any PUBLIC OFFICERS for training as stipulated in the Belize Public Service Regulations 2014ÿPSR 180 and 181).” The association is urging the Ministry of Health and Wellness to select a candidate who possesses the necessary qualifications of a medical laboratory professional, and it has further noted that there is no shortage within the country of such skilled medical laboratory professionals in both the public and private sector, most of whom would likely be a more appropriate recipient of training that is so needed in the country at this time. The association has stated that it would be unacceptable to employ an individual who lacks the necessary medical laboratory background in the country’s medical labs.

The ACLSB additionally asserts in the release that the questionable selection of Ms. Habet as the recipient of such critical training is a disservice to the country, particularly during the pandemic, since, according to the association, assigning a person without the necessary background and experience such an integral role in the COVID-19 testing process will heighten the margin of error in gene sequencing. “Having the wrong person undertaking specialized laboratory training could lay down the fate of our beloved Belize at a high cost!” states the ACLSB release.

It is to be noted that Ms. Habet has already left the country to embark on the gene-sequencing training.

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