Purpose:
The purpose of this toolkit is to provide clinical laboratories with standardized, practical, and easy-to-follow procedures for diagnosing bacterial and yeast infections and performing antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST). The toolkit aims to support consistent diagnostic practices, strengthen the quality of laboratory services, and enhance the generation of reliable data from all laboratories—including those from resource-limited settings and low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
Content:
This toolkit serves as a practical resource of simple, concise, and comprehensive standard operating procedures (SOPs) for clinical laboratories involved in the diagnosis of suspected bacterial and yeast infections and the performance of antimicrobial and antifungal susceptibility testing. The toolkit includes SOPs covering specimen collection, transport and processing, organism identification, biochemical testing, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, detection of resistance mechanisms, mycology and antifungal susceptibility testing workflows, quality control and quality assurance procedures, biosafety and decontamination practices, isolate storage and maintenance, reporting of results, and transport of infectious substances. Bench reference materials designed to complement selected SOPs are also included as part of the toolkit and are provided as separate files.
The toolkit primarily focuses on widely accessible methods to ensure suitability and relevance for laboratories in LMICs. These documents are intended as example procedures and may require adaptation to align with local regulatory requirements, quality management system standards, laboratory capacity, and applicable chemical, radiological, and biological safety regulations. Laboratories are responsible for ensuring the continued applicability and relevance of the procedures within their local context.Public consultation:
The toolkit will undergo public consultation until June 30th, 2026. All invited stakeholders and members of the public are encouraged to review the SOP package and provide feedback based on their expertise. Feedback may include general comments and suggestions on the structure, writing, presentation, and scope of topics covered. In addition, specific comments or recommendations on individual SOPs—such as identifying missing information, proposing edits, or highlighting inconsistencies—are welcome. Feedback will be collected through the online form available on this webpage. To facilitate appropriate review and follow-up of submitted comments, anonymous responses will not be analysed, only responses with an affiliation.
You can find the working documents located in this public folder:
Toolkit SOPs for bacteriology and mycology and AST
Please provide your feedback through the following form:
WHO SOPs Toolkit Consultation Feedback Form – Fill out form
Additional feedback may be provided to AMRASL@who.int