The Director General of Health Services Calls for Accessible Diagnostics for All

20/10/2025: Kampala.

The Director General of Health Services at Ministry of Health, Dr. Charles Olaro, has urged all stakeholders to make diagnostics accessible to everyone up to the lowest levels of community health.

He made the call while presiding over the opening of a two-day training workshop on the Global Access Program (GAP) for Integrated Testing at Serena Kampala Hotel. 

He was accompanied by the Commissioner of National Health Laboratory and Diagnostic Services (NHLDS) Dr. Susan Nabadda, Commissioner for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) Dr. Oyoo Charles Akiya, and Roche Diagnostics Kenya and East Africa Country Manager Dr. Toafik Oloruko Oba.

Dr. Olaro’s remarks come at a time when laboratory and diagnostic services are increasingly being recognized as the backbone of Uganda’s health care system.

“My call to action this morning is for all to reflect on making diagnostics accessible to all, up to the lowest level in the community; ensuring quality data to guide decision-making, training as a core to use and interpret machines and results, and practical ways to implement laboratory strategies,” said Dr. Olaro.

He emphasized the importance of integration as the Ministry moves towards consolidating health services amid funding challenges, describing it as a cornerstone for achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC). He also highlighted the crucial role of laboratory services in supporting community health workers (CHWs), a key component of Uganda’s primary healthcare strategy.

“Lab is the heart of the health care system; lab helps us to screen, detect, monitor, and follow up on health indicators. Integration ensures that we maximise the use of existing equipment as part of the health care ecosystem, and we must include the community (CHWs) who are testing and we need to capture their data at national level,” urged Dr. Olaro.

To date, 5,200 CHWs have been commissioned, with 3,000 more currently undergoing training to strengthen community-level health services.

Dr. Olaro also commended Roche Diagnostics for its continued partnership with the Ministry of Health, noting that the collaboration goes beyond technology extending to systems strengthening and knowledge transfer for sustainability.

Roche Kenya Country Manager, Dr. Toafik Oloruko Oba, emphasised that Roche’s interest is creating solutions that add value across the health care system from screening to treatment.

“As we focus on integrated testing, as Roche we want to assess testing for HIV, TB, and HepB in Uganda, where are we in solutions provided by Roche, and how do we integrate at lab, supply chain, or program level?” explained Dr. Toafik.

NHLDS Commissioner Dr. Susan Nabadda shared the purpose of optimizing resources through integration.

“We want to look at integrated testing, leveraging our existing platforms to understand how this can be done. We are glad MoH has partnered with Roche to conduct this training, to take us through and hope that at the end of the training, we will utilise the systems and integrate amidst dwindling resources,” said Dr. Nabadda.

GAP is a programme launched by Roche Diagnostics, aimed at improving access to high-quality diagnostics in low- and lower-middle income countries (LMICs). 

The programme aims at integrating multiple disease-areas and diagnostics services under one coherent access and sustainability strategy. Integrated testing is a coordinated, holistic approach that combines multiple diagnostic methods and disciplines to provide a comprehensive and accurate understanding of a patient's health status.