ABRIDGED PROFILE OF LADY E. U. OKONKWO

Lady Mrs Elizabeth Uchechukwu Okonkwo, the first Female Secretary/ Registrar of the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) joined the then Institute of Medical Laboratory Technology IMLT on a transfer of service from LUTH in 1983 during the tenure of Mr G. W. Park as the Secretary Registrar.

Okonkwo became an Associate member of IMLT, (AIMLT) having graduated from the School Medical Laboratory Technology, UNTH Enugu majoring in Bacteriology in 1978.  After starting work in the Institute, she noticed that working on the bench was different from working in the office this pushed her to acquire Masters in Public Administration (MPA) from University of Lagos in 1995.

As at the time she resumed in the Institute, she and Mr G. W Park were the only Medical Lab Scientists that were in the then IMLT, now MLSCN, she became the Acting Secretary/Registrar below 40 years in 1994 when Dr S.M Osuoha, her Principal at SMLT Enugu who replaced Mr G. W Park also retired as the Secretary/Registrar. She was confirmed the substantive Secretary/ Registrar in 1996, a position she held till 2010 (16years) making her the longest serving Registrar since the inception of Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria.

When she took over the mantle of leadership, as a woman she looked inwards and observed that the profession was lagging behind in some areas and in order to change the narrative, she insisted that the Institute must change from the status quo of licensing, examination and registration.

To kick start this, she overhauled the curriculum of the study of Medical Laboratory Science with the inclusion of other relevant courses, she preached the gospel of acquisition of higher degree. It was during her time, with the MLSCN Board headed by Mr Dustan Tabansi of the blessed memory, that the Medical Laboratory Scientist were referred as to “Scientists”. Some of her other achievements includes not limited to the following:

The woman described as the “Amazon of the modern day Medical Laboratory Science”, encouraged Younger Medical Laboratory Scientists to go beyond the bench practice and venture into new things, conquer new frontiers through research, leverage on partnerships with other professional colleagues and manufacturing of In-vitro Diagnostics and this has yielded tremendous results as many Medical Laboratory Scientists are found in all spheres of life today.

We provide medical laboratories with Quality manual, Standard Operating Procedures, template for laboratory records (forms), safety manual and training. 

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