Egypt's Ministry of Health and Population organized on Saturday the fourth annual scientific conference of the central laboratories, under the slogan "Towards One Health". The conference reviews the latest technical methods and technologies in the field of laboratory analysis, and follows up on future steps for the use of technology and artificial intelligence in the field of medical diagnosis, in a way that contributes to preserving the safety of the Egyptian citizen, by adopting a health-conscious and advanced approach, and raising community immunity. On behalf of Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, Minister of Health and Population, Amr Qandil, the Head of the Preventive Medicine Sector and Honorary Chairman of the Conference, delivered the opening speech, where he thanked all the workers in the preventive medicine sector, led by the human cadres working in the central laboratories, given their efforts to make the health system a success. Qandil stressed the importance of the conference in reviewing and transferring the latest laboratory research in the field of food and water safety, in addition to its role in spreading the culture of antimicrobial resistance to antibiotics. He pointed out the importance of participation and coordination between all sectors and agencies affiliated with the Ministry of Health and Population, according to a unified strategy for early detection of epidemics and viruses and dealing with them quickly, in order to preserve the health of humans, animals, and plants. Qandil explained that the central laboratories are one of the main arms of the success of the health system, which played an important role in addressing the Coronavirus pandemic, in cooperation with the authorised authorities, reviewing the efforts of the laboratories and the modern work mechanisms used in the field of organization, control and continuous follow-up, and monitoring and addressing epidemic and infectious diseases to ensure the protection of the health of the Egyptian citizen from diseases transmitted through food and water, which contributes to reaching a healthy society. He further added that a new central laboratories complex in Badr City is being established and equipped, on an area of 33,000 square meters, and equipped according to building codes and standards. He pointed out that Egypt has great experience in the field of laboratories and medical analysis. Qandil continued that in light of the global trend of data science and artificial intelligence and its ability to formulate future predictions of diseases, the ministry has been keen to bring in the latest types of technology for medical analyzes and samples of all kinds, to contribute to developing recommendations for decision-makers, by building an existing database on scientific evidence, which contributes to making informed decisions during times of pandemics.
