The persistent inter-professional rivalry within the laboratory medicine practice domain of Nigerian tertiary healthcare institutions constitutes a systemic crisis that undermines diagnostic accuracy, jeopardizes patient safety, and disrupts healthcare delivery. This longstanding conflict between the Medical Laboratory Scientists (MLS) and the laboratory-based physicians (Clinical Pathologists) centers mainly on operational independence, leadership in clinical laboratories, and statutory boundaries. This review examines the historical, legal, educational, and socio-political causes of this rivalry in Nigerian tertiary healthcare settings. Historically, laboratory medicine practice functions shifted from physician-led to specialized, autonomous scientific roles, leading to overlapping claims over laboratory and clinical consultation domains. Conflicting laws—such as the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) Practitioners Act and the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) Act—have created parallel regulatory frameworks, resulting in ongoing legal disputes at the National Industrial Court. These dynamics foster operational silos, strikes, and diagnostic errors, often causing preventable misdiagnoses. To transform this rivalry into collaborative clinical efforts, the article recommends a comprehensive approach that includes legislative reforms, separation of administrative and clinical roles, formal interprofessional education in training, and joint governance boards in tertiary healthcare settings. Ultimately, resolving this conflict is vital to achieving international standards and protecting Nigerian patient care from interprofessional conflicts.
| Published in | American Journal of Health Policy and Management (Volume 1, Issue 1) |
| DOI | 10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11 |
| Page(s) | 1-12 |
| Creative Commons |
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited. |
| Copyright |
Copyright © The Author(s), 2026. Published by Science Publishing Group |
Nigeria, Interprofessional Relations, Laboratories, Hospital, Tertiary Healthcare, Health Workforce
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APA Style
Amadi, C., Amadi, R. C., Amadi, S. C., Amadi, E. C., John, C. (2026). Overview of Persistent Inter-Professional Rivalry Within the Laboratory Medicine Practice Domain of Tertiary Healthcare Institutions in Nigeria: A Narrative Review. American Journal of Health Policy and Management, 1(1), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11
ACS Style
Amadi, C.; Amadi, R. C.; Amadi, S. C.; Amadi, E. C.; John, C. Overview of Persistent Inter-Professional Rivalry Within the Laboratory Medicine Practice Domain of Tertiary Healthcare Institutions in Nigeria: A Narrative Review. Am. J. Health Policy Manag. 2026, 1(1), 1-12. doi: 10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11
AMA Style
Amadi C, Amadi RC, Amadi SC, Amadi EC, John C. Overview of Persistent Inter-Professional Rivalry Within the Laboratory Medicine Practice Domain of Tertiary Healthcare Institutions in Nigeria: A Narrative Review. Am J Health Policy Manag. 2026;1(1):1-12. doi: 10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11
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Download@article{10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11,
author = {Collins Amadi and Roy Chidi Amadi and Sasha Chidera Amadi and Elena Chile Amadi and Comfort John},
title = {Overview of Persistent Inter-Professional Rivalry Within the Laboratory Medicine Practice Domain of Tertiary Healthcare Institutions in Nigeria: A Narrative Review},
journal = {American Journal of Health Policy and Management},
volume = {1},
number = {1},
pages = {1-12},
doi = {10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11},
url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11},
eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajhpm.20260101.11},
abstract = {The persistent inter-professional rivalry within the laboratory medicine practice domain of Nigerian tertiary healthcare institutions constitutes a systemic crisis that undermines diagnostic accuracy, jeopardizes patient safety, and disrupts healthcare delivery. This longstanding conflict between the Medical Laboratory Scientists (MLS) and the laboratory-based physicians (Clinical Pathologists) centers mainly on operational independence, leadership in clinical laboratories, and statutory boundaries. This review examines the historical, legal, educational, and socio-political causes of this rivalry in Nigerian tertiary healthcare settings. Historically, laboratory medicine practice functions shifted from physician-led to specialized, autonomous scientific roles, leading to overlapping claims over laboratory and clinical consultation domains. Conflicting laws—such as the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) Practitioners Act and the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) Act—have created parallel regulatory frameworks, resulting in ongoing legal disputes at the National Industrial Court. These dynamics foster operational silos, strikes, and diagnostic errors, often causing preventable misdiagnoses. To transform this rivalry into collaborative clinical efforts, the article recommends a comprehensive approach that includes legislative reforms, separation of administrative and clinical roles, formal interprofessional education in training, and joint governance boards in tertiary healthcare settings. Ultimately, resolving this conflict is vital to achieving international standards and protecting Nigerian patient care from interprofessional conflicts.},
year = {2026}
}
TY - JOUR T1 - Overview of Persistent Inter-Professional Rivalry Within the Laboratory Medicine Practice Domain of Tertiary Healthcare Institutions in Nigeria: A Narrative Review AU - Collins Amadi AU - Roy Chidi Amadi AU - Sasha Chidera Amadi AU - Elena Chile Amadi AU - Comfort John Y1 - 2026/09/22 PY - 2026 N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11 DO - 10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11 T2 - American Journal of Health Policy and Management JF - American Journal of Health Policy and Management JO - American Journal of Health Policy and Management SP - 1 EP - 12 PB - Science Publishing Group UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajhpm.20260101.11 AB - The persistent inter-professional rivalry within the laboratory medicine practice domain of Nigerian tertiary healthcare institutions constitutes a systemic crisis that undermines diagnostic accuracy, jeopardizes patient safety, and disrupts healthcare delivery. This longstanding conflict between the Medical Laboratory Scientists (MLS) and the laboratory-based physicians (Clinical Pathologists) centers mainly on operational independence, leadership in clinical laboratories, and statutory boundaries. This review examines the historical, legal, educational, and socio-political causes of this rivalry in Nigerian tertiary healthcare settings. Historically, laboratory medicine practice functions shifted from physician-led to specialized, autonomous scientific roles, leading to overlapping claims over laboratory and clinical consultation domains. Conflicting laws—such as the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) Practitioners Act and the Medical Laboratory Science Council of Nigeria (MLSCN) Act—have created parallel regulatory frameworks, resulting in ongoing legal disputes at the National Industrial Court. These dynamics foster operational silos, strikes, and diagnostic errors, often causing preventable misdiagnoses. To transform this rivalry into collaborative clinical efforts, the article recommends a comprehensive approach that includes legislative reforms, separation of administrative and clinical roles, formal interprofessional education in training, and joint governance boards in tertiary healthcare settings. Ultimately, resolving this conflict is vital to achieving international standards and protecting Nigerian patient care from interprofessional conflicts. VL - 1 IS - 1 ER -
Department of Chemical Pathology, Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, Nigeria;Department of Chemical Pathology, PAMO University of Medical Sciences, Port Harcourt, Nigeria;Department of Chemical Pathology, University of Uyo, Uyo, Nigeria;Department of Laboratory Services, MEDCOL Nigeria Limited, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Department of Laboratory Services, MEDCOL Nigeria Limited, Port Harcourt, Nigeria;Basic Health Studies, Captain Elechi Amadi Polytechnic, Port Harcourt, Nigeria;Basic Health Studies, Excellent Montessori College, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Department of Laboratory Services, MEDCOL Nigeria Limited, Port Harcourt, Nigeria;Basic Health Studies, Captain Elechi Amadi Polytechnic, Port Harcourt, Nigeria;Basic Health Studies, Excellent Montessori College, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Department of Laboratory Services, MEDCOL Nigeria Limited, Port Harcourt, Nigeria;Basic Health Studies, Captain Elechi Amadi Polytechnic, Port Harcourt, Nigeria;Basic Health Studies, Excellent Montessori College, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Department of Laboratory Services, MEDCOL Nigeria Limited, Port Harcourt, Nigeria;Department of Business Management, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
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