MedX International was proud to participate in the 8th East, Central and South Africa Health Community (ECSAHC) Global Fund Regional TB Laboratory Strengthening Steering Committee Meeting, held from 7–9 September 2022 at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The meeting brought together national TB program leads, laboratory experts, global fund implementers, and technical partners from across 21 African countries, focused on accelerating progress in TB diagnostic services and surveillance systems.
Our Contribution
MedX was invited as a diagnostic connectivity solution provider and had the opportunity to exhibit and speak at the event.
Key activities included:
- Product Exhibition Booth showcasing the LabXpert Suite
- Presentation on best practices and lessons from national lab digitisation projects
- Distribution of brochures and conference material
- Direct engagement with country programs, implementers, and donors
What We Presented
In our talk and booth exhibition, we highlighted practical, field-proven tools currently deployed across Uganda, Ethiopia, and South Sudan:
1. LabXpert LIMS
An end-to-end laboratory information system used in both public and private labs, designed to digitise pre-analytical to post-analytical workflows, reduce turnaround time, and support sample and result traceability.
2. LabXpert Surveillance
A national-level lab connectivity platform that integrates with diagnostic machines (e.g., GeneXpert), automatically reports results, monitors stock levels, and sends notifications to clinicians and patients. Currently active across over 300 labs and responsible for transmitting over 1 million test results.
3. LabXpert Visio
A new concept for microscopy digitisation. Using a low-cost camera add-on and a mobile app, LabXpert Visio allows labs to capture, store, and transmit high-quality slide images. This improves remote quality assurance, slide traceability, and lays the groundwork for future AI-assisted diagnostics.
Why This Matters
Our message was simple: connecting the lab is no longer optional. Delays in reporting, poor visibility into equipment and stock, and lack of feedback loops between test and treatment continue to hold back TB response.
Tools like the LabXpert Suite give countries a way to:
- Monitor diagnostic performance across hundreds of sites
- Reduce the time from test to treatment
- Detect system-level issues before they affect outcomes
- Lay the digital foundation for integrated disease surveillance
Reflections from Addis
The event was not only a technical meeting, but also a powerful platform for regional collaboration and shared learning. We were inspired by the openness of participants to new technologies and their commitment to strengthening diagnostic systems across borders.
We’re thankful to the Ethiopian National TB Reference Laboratory and ECSAHC team for the invitation, and we look forward to continued partnerships with ministries of health, implementing partners, and donors working to make TB diagnostics faster, more reliable, and data-driven.
