The practical training and further education of employees of the national quality control laboratories (QCLs) of African project partners is a focus of the GHPP LabTrain project.

The training series of "Advanced Trainings" is aimed at alumni of the GHPP DQA project and partners of the structure formation and offers in-depth training in advanced laboratory techniques and methods. In this context, the first of a series of planned "Advanced Trainings" took place from January 24 to 26, 2024 at the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM).

The training course on "Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry" (ICP-MS) was led by an external trainer from PerkinElmer and focused on the practical application of the "NexION ICP-MS" model. ICP-MS is an advanced analytical method in which a large number of chemical elements can be determined in very low concentrations in complex samples.

As a hybrid planned event, the training was held both on site at the BfArM premises and virtually to enable broader participation. In total, a group of 7 trainees took part, consisting of alumni of the GHPP DQA project and employees of the German project partners BfArM and InphA.

The training, which lasted several days, enabled a range of relevant topics to be covered comprehensively. This included theoretical aspects such as the concept of the ICP-MS procedure, the structure of the device and method development, as well as practical instruction in the use of the operating software, the performance of daily performance tests and optimization of the system, and instructions on troubleshooting and maintenance.

The training was specifically geared towards the needs of African drug regulatory authorities who are in the process of establishing this analytical method in their QCLs. The feedback from the participants was consistently positive and the training marked the successful start of a series of "Advanced Trainings" within the framework of GHPP LabTrain.