Lancet Laboratories is one of Johannesburg’s biggest and most popular diagnostic centre. They’re a well-established medical institution specialising in pathology laboratories with several clinics throughout South Africa.

One thing we admire about Lancet Laboratories is how they take advantage of the latest trends in technology. They developed a mobile application and a “Pathportal” where patients and doctors can access laboratory information and test results.

This convenient feature is one of the reasons why they’re sought after by patients. Lancet Laboratories is highly recommended for its accessible and efficient processes.

Patients appreciate that they have friendly staff and professional nurses and medical technicians. Lancet Laboratories’ personnel are described by patients as quick to respond, knowledgeable, and helpful.

We’re impressed that their laboratories are well-equipped with accredited and experienced doctors in several fields of medicine. 

Another thing we like about Lancet Laboratories is their versatility. They offer a broad range of services focusing on providing pathology tests, corporate health services, and health insurance.

Aside from haematology, Lancet Laboratories can also attend to patients’ needs in other fields such as cytology, virology, histology, microbiology, chemical pathology, and others. We love that they’re a one-stop shop for all laboratory needs.

In terms of pricing, we’re told that Lancet Laboratories’ rates are higher than other clinics. However, their patients don’t seem to mind as their pricing matches the calibre of service they expect.

Moreover, we noticed that Lancet Laboratories’ customer service needs improvement. We’re told that there are times when patients have a hard time reaching out to them.

Also, there are some complaints about their representatives being hard to talk to, resulting in patient-clinic miscommunication. As clinics deal with patients’ information, health, and wellbeing, we think it’s important that they establish clear communication with their clients.

If you’re looking to have your blood tested for sexually transmitted diseases, Engage Men’s Health might be a good option for you. Engage Men’s Health is a project led by a non-profit organisation and is funded by USAID and PEPFAR through the FHI 360 EpiC project. 

They’re an accessible men’s clinic in Joburg that offers confidential human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing for gay men, bisexual men, and men who have sexual intercourse with men. 

What we found noteworthy about Engage Men’s Health is how welcoming their clinic is for stigmatised men. Firstly, they offer HIV testing and treatment, counselling and community workshops all for free. 

Secondly, we love that Engage Men’s Health advocates for their clinic to be a safe and non-judgmental place for men who have sex with men (MSM). All HIV tests are confidential and the clinic’s staff are very supportive in cases where the results are positive.

However, some patients are disappointed that the clinic only has rapid tests for HIV and not other sexually-transmitted infections (STIs). They have reached out to the clinic to suggest expanding their services, but there aren’t solid plans yet.

Although Engage Men’s Health allows appointment booking through their website, we’ve heard complaints from patients that they still wait in line for hours, which is an inconvenience. 

We suggest that the clinic set a fixed number of slots per day to establish a more organised queuing system.

Lastly, we were told some patients have bad experiences with reportedly amateur nurses. Patients complain that the personnel in charge of drawing blood samples repeatedly pricks patients to get the samples.

We hope Engage Men’s Health conducts more training for their medical technicians so they could execute their tasks and serve customers better. 

Mullah Laboratories, initially called Papsmear Laboratories, is a diagnostic clinic devoted to providing affordable diagnostic testing to communities. Although smaller than other clinics, Mullah Laboratories provides services in several fields.

Mullah Laboratories specialises in haematology, cytology, microbiology, chemical pathology, and molecular biology. 

A notable feature Mullah Laboratories has is they’re accredited by the Health Professions Council of South Africa and the Society of Medical Laboratory Technologists of South Africa. 

We’re also impressed that they’re partnered with several research and non-government organizations, supporting their advocacy to provide cytology screening services to disadvantaged communities throughout South Africa.

Mullah Laboratories is well-equipped not only in terms of modern equipment but also with talented human resources.

Their patients are satisfied with their seamless processes and skilled nurses and experienced medical technologists. Their staff are complimented for being kind and helpful, and for showing professionalism in the job.

The doctors they’re partnered with are professionals with exceptional educational backgrounds. The founder of the clinic herself is a board registered cytology-technologist with a Masters of Science in Biomedical Technology from the Cape Peninsula University of Technology.

However, as they are a small clinic, there are times when Mullah Laboratories is fully booked and unable to accommodate more patients.

There are also minor grievances from patients regarding the clinic’s customer service. We’re told it takes a really long time before the clinic gets back to patients on their enquiries and concerns.

There are also cases where test results are released very late, which patients find disappointing. As the diagnostic test procedures the laboratory offers identify infections that may be serious, not releasing results according to the timeline may be risky. 

The National Health Laboratory Service is one of the most prominent laboratory clinics in all of South Africa as it’s one of the biggest institutions that deal with diagnostic pathology.

The first thing we find remarkable is how well-established the National Health Laboratory Service is. They’re partnered with several specialised institutions that act as their subsidiary.

Being so branched out and still able to provide several types of diagnostic services to patients under one roof is impressive and convenient. 

The National Health Laboratory Service also has several priority programmes which focus on HIV study, diagnosis and treatment, paediatric HIV, and tuberculosis diagnosis.

Their patients like that the clinic’s procedures are always organised and prompt. They also compliment the medical technologists and nurses who handle them for being knowledgable, friendly but professional.

We also admire the institution’s advocacy for providing affordable and cost-effective laboratory services to the public, which their patients also appreciate. 

One thing we’d like the National Health Laboratory Service to improve on is its customer service. There are reports where patients experienced dealing with rude and unfriendly staff members. 

We were also told that the clinic’s representatives also take their time before responding to questions and requests, which isn’t ideal for a healthcare provider.

For a company as big as the National Health Laboratory Service, we’re expecting that they’re equipped with enough manpower and that their staff is highly trained.

For all of Joburg’s blood-related needs, the South African National Blood Service (SANBS) is your go-to place. They’re an established non-profit organisation with a mission to provide high-quality blood products and services to all patients.

We found it interesting that although they’re more known for their blood donation drives, the South African National Blood Service also provides a broad selection of clinical and specialised services.

Particularly for immunohematology, their laboratory is fully equipped and accredited. We’re also impressed that they’re partnered with several haematology experts.

We also like that they have after-hours testing support available 24/7. This is a unique feature that other laboratory clinics don’t have.

They offer antenatal testing, screening for and identification of irregular red cell antibodies, red cell phenotyping and genotyping, provision of blood for patients with rare blood types, and transfusion reaction investigations.

Their patients have a generally positive experience with the laboratory’s procedures. They like that their system is organised and patients are assured that everyone assisting them is an experienced professional.

It’s great that their pricing for blood products and laboratory procedures is affordable, too. 

If there’s anything we’d like the South African National Blood Service to improve on, it’s their lack of customer service representatives. There were reports stating that patients have a hard time reaching out to their frontliners.

Also, although equipped with good technology and partnered with experienced professionals, their laboratory is smaller compared to others and thus has a smaller service request capacity.