Page 36 - The Veterinary Laboratory and Field Manual 3rd Edition

Setting up and using a laboratory service 5

assess the performance of the laboratory and to tres there is often a strong emphasis on team
ensure the effective delivery of services to the effort with laboratory/extension staff taking an
end user, that is, the farmer. During any planned important role in sample collection and advisory
joint activities, laboratory staff should make sure services for the farmer.
that veterinary field and extension staff have an
adequate supply of laboratory submission forms
and sampling materials, preservatives and trans- Planning fieldwork and the use of a
port boxes as well as providing technical advice. mobile laboratory
Specific training suggestions for laboratory tech-
nicians is outlined in section 1.3. The emphasis of the laboratory programme
will be determined by regional and national
requirements. In regional centres the main role
Field visits
of the laboratory may be to act as a diagnostic
Training programmes should incorporate par- unit whereas for many of the central facilities,
ticipation in field visits, disease investigations research and the production of biological prod-
and targeted surveillance programmes for labo- ucts will also be an important feature. Veterinary
ratory, livestock extension and veterinary field staff in regional laboratories are often respon-
and support staff. Joint field visits provide the sible for providing technical advice and support
opportunity for training in sample collection, as as well as organizing and facilitating disease
well as ensuring that good case history notes are surveillance programmes, monitoring livestock
taken, and that the quality and type of samples at borders and quarantine units, the assess-
submitted are appropriate. ment of animal health on farms and monitoring
Laboratory staff should be encouraged to join slaughterhouse hygiene. Laboratory-based vet-
field teams on a regular basis so that they can erinarians may need to be available to provide
experience the practical limitations placed on additional technical backup for livestock exten-
livestock extension staff and field veterinarians, sion and veterinary field staff and may be directly
for example, the lack of facilities for livestock involved in their training.
restraint, problems with sample collection and In situations where the laboratory veterinar-
so on. Meeting the end users of the diagnos- ians, and other technical staff, are expected to
tic service, that is, the farmer, can also help to provide technical backup for the field extension
highlight the importance of handling samples staff it is important that reliable and appropriate
submitted to the laboratory with due diligence transport is made available along with an ade-
and also the need to report results in a timely quate budget to facilitate field visits. A robust
manner. four-wheel drive vehicle is generally suitable but
The exact requirements for laboratory sup- may need to be upgraded if long distance jour-
port and practical assistance during fieldwork neys are required. For individual staff members,
will depend on the level of technical competence a bicycle or a motorbike may be useful for short
of the field extension staff and the availability of journeys but a larger vehicle is generally pref-
trained auxiliary staff to facilitate animal han- erable where equipment and sample collection
dling. The resources available will vary with materials need to be transported. Mobile labo-
the country and the region within the country. ratory units may be a good investment in some
In urban or central laboratories, there may be regions. These allow laboratory and extension
little scope for laboratory staff to participate in staff to go out on tour for several days or weeks at a
fieldwork but in the regional and district cen- time and process samples en route (Figure 1.1a).

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