Influence Of Human Factors On Performance Of Selected Medical Laboratory Projects Managed By Centre For Disease Control In Central Kenya

Abstract

Performance of medical laboratory services and patient outcomes are improved by Quality management systems. Previous studies have been dedicated to identifying the critical factors for successful implementation of Quality Management System. However, high failure rates in laboratories in low-resource settings have been reported. It is likely that human factors significantly affect the outcomes of laboratory performance. Some human factors such as staff training, top leadership commitment, team work and staff appraisal have not been adequately covered in the literature. Also, it has not been established whether the quality management practices should be universally adopted or they should be adapted to the unique characteristics of organizations. The objectives of study were to examine influence of human factors on performance of selected Medical laboratory a case of Central Kenya. A cross-sectional study of 27 laboratories in central Kenya that have implemented Quality Management System was adopted and the targeted respondents were Hospital Medical superintendent, Laboratory manager and Quality officer staff. A sample of 81 respondents was drawn from the target of 27 laboratories. Quantitative method was used for data collection; self-administered questionnaires was used to collect data from Hospital Medical superintendent, Laboratory manager and Quality officer staff. A sample size of 81 respondents was used. Prior to actual data collection pilot testing of the instrument was conducted in a controlled environment using a small number of respondents which were selected randomly to test the reliability of the research instrument. Data analysis and interpretation was based on descriptive statistics and measures of dispersion. The data was analyzed using SPSS version 15.0. The collected data was used to examine the effect of human factors on the on performance of selected Medical laboratory projects managed by CDC in central Kenya. The researcher finding shows that the leadership has taken the mantle and is steering quality improvement strategies, there is need to sensitize the leadership on importance of quality improvement to ensure quality of services. It is important that the concerned leadership mobilize resource required in the laboratory as they play a key role in quality improvement. There is need to prioritize customer needs and expectation. Pursuing long term objectives helps the involved team remain focused and work towards achieving the set goals and sustainability towards the set mark. The research findings show that there is need for training for both managerial staff and technical staff. Evaluation for training needs is important as it helps the stake holder to identify the demanding areas hence helping come up with a training that suits or rather addresses the prevailing issues. There is need to put a policy/guidelines on training in any institution Team work recognition is crucial as this encourages the employee to combine their efforts together in the focus of the determined goals. Staff appraisals should be conducted on defined period, staff motivation should be based on performance. The study concluded that staff training and staff appraisal influences significantly the laboratory performance. Measures need to be put in place to ensure that sustainability of laboratory performance is assured through top leadership involvement, access to right resources, capacity building and policy implementation in order to successfully address the issues of perennial episodes drop of laboratory performance. The researcher recommends that similar studies to be conducted in other laboratories implementing Quality Management Systems in Kenya.