EQPAL Medical and REME-D Take Hepatitis Screening Into the Community
Field diagnostics ahead of World Hepatitis Day 2026
In the weeks leading up to World Hepatitis Day, EQPAL Medical and REME-D moved the campaign out of the conference room and into the communities where hepatitis most often goes undetected.
Working from local health facilities and a mobile laboratory unit deployed alongside KEMRI, our joint teams carried out community-based hepatitis screening using a two-stage diagnostic protocol.
A two-step approach to accurate results
Every participant received a rapid screening test on arrival — a fast, accessible first line of detection. Any sample returning a positive result was then confirmed on-site through molecular PCR testing, processed by REME-D’s field-deployable diagnostic platform.
This second step is what distinguishes the programme. Rapid tests are valuable for reaching large numbers of people quickly, but they indicate rather than confirm. PCR testing provides the definitive result that a clinician needs to begin treatment. In most community outreach settings, patients who screen positive must travel to a distant laboratory — and often wait weeks — before that confirmation arrives. Many never return.
By bringing molecular diagnostics directly to the point of care, participants received both screening and confirmation within a single visit.
Why it matters
Hepatitis B and C remain among the most under-diagnosed conditions across East Africa, in large part because diagnostic infrastructure is concentrated in urban centres. Late diagnosis narrows treatment options and drives avoidable liver disease and mortality.
Closing that gap requires more than awareness messaging. It requires diagnostic capability that can physically travel to underserved communities and operate reliably in field conditions — which is precisely the challenge REME-D’s molecular platforms are designed to address, and which EQPAL Medical’s distribution and logistics capacity across Kenya makes possible at scale.
Building on the work
The screening programme laid the groundwork for the World Hepatitis Day campaign that followed, which included a certified Scientific and Practical Training Programme delivered in partnership with the Ministry of Health, county government, and NASCOP — equipping local healthcare workers to operate the same molecular diagnostic technology independently.
Screening reaches people once. Trained healthcare workers with working equipment reach them for years.
Our thanks
We are grateful to the health workers, community health volunteers, KEMRI’s mobile laboratory team, and every community member who took part.
To learn more about our diagnostic solutions or partnership opportunities, contact EQPAL Medical at eqpalmed@gmail.com or +254 748 009 000.
