My passion for caring and helping the sick is what made me venture into the health field
Yokyu Estel Tante is a Laboratory Scientist by training. Presently, she works in the field of Blood Safety and Blood Transfusion as a Quality Assurance Officer, providing technical assistance (mentoring) to blood services and diagnostic laboratories with the goal of being certified or accredited.
During her spare time, there are lot of fun things that she enjoys doing. Shopping, she says, is on the top of her list. She loves dancing and working out to music, especially Afro pop music. Through travelling and sightseeing, another hobby, she gets to meet and connect with people from diverse backgrounds, exchange ideas and learn from different cultures.
Click here to read part 1 of Yokyu Estel Tante’s interview.
What experience(s) are you most proud of? (Continued from Part 1…)
Another memorable experience was my first appointment when I finished my Masters’ program. I was fresh out of school with little to no managerial experience, however, six months after arriving at the regional blood service, I was appointed to head the Blood Service. At that time, the Blood Service received an average of 3000 blood donors yearly – depending mostly on family/replacement blood donors with less than 5% of donors being voluntary donors. In order to increase the availability of blood, reduce maternal mortality at childbirth and reduce the turnaround time, we were able to make agreements with faith-based institutions, schools and some organizations to relaunch blood drives which had been put on hold. The number of voluntary donors rose to 40%, patients on hemodialysis treatment were guaranteed units of blood for their dialysis sessions. The regional Blood Service together with the regional lab were enrolled in the Stepwise Laboratory Quality Improvement Process Towards Accreditation (SLIPTA) program, at the end of which we earned a 3-star accreditation.
What are some of the biggest challenges you have faced? How did you overcome them? What are some of the lessons learnt?
- Working with little supervision: This initially scared me when I got my first assignment as an onsite mentor, since I was sent alone to the town I was assigned to. However, I was able to develop leadership skills. Planning activities monthly and teamwork were my life savers.
- Getting the personnel on board the quality train. The Quality Management System (QMS) is still a new concept in our African setting, most managers and personnel still view it as costly and a waste of resources. So, it is a challenge restructuring the mentality of “Quality” as a culture vs an end goal. One of the ways of proving the benefits of implementing a QMS and getting certified is monitoring and evaluating a set of key performance indicators (KPI) which are of interest to the structure (customer satisfaction surveys, number of clients, number of discarded products, prevalence of infections). By projecting the level of improvement following compliance with the standards, it encourages everyone to hop on the quality train. Also, little forms of acknowledgements and staff motivation go a long way to boost their commitment to the cause.
- Tight budget: Quality improvement comes at a cost, so working with a limited budget is a huge challenge. One of my secrets to going around this common challenge is the use of “low hanging fruits”. A certified service is not one with brand new equipment and beautiful infrastructure. I basically stuck to the standards and used the limited funds to get the ball rolling. Also, advocacy with top management to provide funds to upgrade the Blood Services especially when they begin to see good monthly results from KPI.
- Carrying out mentoring and training without interfering with the smooth running of the service. This was a little challenging given that there was already a staff deficit and the service must run 24/7. I started off by creating personnel files and identifying the skills and the training needs of each staff. Taking into consideration their monthly roster, I was able to come up with an elaborate action plan which fitted perfectly with the personnel routine.
Mentorship is key in promoting and encouraging young women to excel and strive in a male-dominated sector - Yokyu Estel Tante Click To Tweet
What is the value of mentorship in your opinion?
Mentorship is priceless. Mentorship is key in promoting and encouraging young women to excel and strive in a male-dominated sector. It gives much-needed guidance and specialty orientation for the mentee to make the right decisions for a fulfilled and successful career. When you have a role model you look up to, you can only strive to do better. They act as your counsellor and support system.
Have you ever been mentored, if so, by whom and has this mentorship played a role in your career advancement?
I have never received any formal mentoring, but I did have experienced professionals in the field of blood safety and blood transfusion who gave me counsel and served as role models. I have them to thank for my career choices, experience and passion for the work. Professor Mbanya Dora, current President of the African Society for Blood Transfusion (AfSBT), and Professor Claude Tayou.
What are some of the opportunities you see for women in health on the African continent?
Honestly, I have barely come across specific opportunities for women in health. However, I am always impressed to see the number of women doing it big in the health-related fields.
Strive for excellence and success would follow suit - Yokyu Estel Tante Click To Tweet
What advice do you have for other women in health?
Initially, most fields and top managerial positions in health were held and occupied in majority by males but these statistics have greatly tilted in favor of women. This is evidence of women having increased interest in health-related professions. Women have a tendency for an unwavering zeal for excellence which is either innate or learned. My advice to women in health is to “c”. We should be exemplary and let our work “standout” as a gold standard for others to emulate.