scholarly journals External quality assessment programs: Past, present and future

2005 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 201-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Plebani
Keyword(s):  
Quality Evaluation ◽  
External Quality Assessment ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Future Perspectives ◽  
External Quality ◽  
Quality Of Control ◽  
Clinical Laboratories ◽  
Growing Body ◽  
Analytical Errors

External Quality Assurance (EQA) and Proficiency Testing (PT) programs are fundamental tools for quality evaluation and improvement in clinical laboratories. A growing body of evidence has been collected to demonstrate the usefulness of these programs for reducing inter-laboratory variation, analytical errors and for improving the "state-of-the art". The validity of EQA/PT programs is strongly affected by the quality of control materials, the design of the program, namely the ability to estimate analytical bias and imprecision, and the commitment of providers to assist in the education participant laboratories. Future perspectives of EQA/PT are the possibility to evaluate pre- and post-analytical steps, the utilization of Internet for receiving and communicating results to participant laboratories and the accreditation/certification of the programs. .

scholarly journals Diagnostic Challenges on the Laboratory Detection of Lupus Anticoagulant

Biomedicines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 844
Author(s):  
Armando Tripodi
Keyword(s):  
Lupus Anticoagulant ◽  
Clinical Laboratory ◽  
External Quality Assessment ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Diagnostic Procedures ◽  
External Quality ◽  
Glycoprotein I ◽  
Current State ◽  
Clinical Laboratories

Lupus anticoagulant (LA) is one of the three laboratory parameters (the others being antibodies to either cardiolipin or β2-glycoprotein I) which defines the rare but potentially devastating condition known as antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). Testing for LA is a challenging task for the clinical laboratory because specific tests for its detection are not available. However, proper LA detection is paramount for patients’ management, as its persistent positivity in the presence of (previous or current) thrombotic events, candidate for long term anticoagulation. Guidelines for LA detection have been established and updated over the last two decades. Implementation of these guidelines across laboratories and participation to external quality assessment schemes are required to help standardize the diagnostic procedures and help clinicians for appropriate management of APS. This article aims to review the current state of the art and the challenges that clinical laboratories incur in the detection of LA.

scholarly journals Vitamin D: Current Challenges between the Laboratory and Clinical Practice

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 1758
Author(s):  
Ludmila Máčová ◽  
Marie Bičíková
Keyword(s):  
Vitamin D ◽  
Normal Values ◽  
External Quality Assessment ◽  
Healthy Population ◽  
External Quality ◽  
Clinical Laboratories ◽  
Routine Measurement ◽  
Growing Body ◽  
High Degree ◽  
Significant Interference

Vitamin D is a micronutrient with pleiotropic effects in humans. Due to sedentary lifestyles and increasing time spent indoors, a growing body of research is revealing that vitamin D deficiency is a global problem. Despite the routine measurement of vitamin D in clinical laboratories and many years of efforts, methods of vitamin D analysis have yet to be standardized and are burdened with significant difficulties. This review summarizes several key analytical and clinical challenges that accompany the current methods for measuring vitamin D. According to an external quality assessment, methods and laboratories still produce a high degree of variability. Structurally similar metabolites are a source of significant interference. Furthermore, there is still no consensus on the normal values of vitamin D in a healthy population. These and other problems discussed herein can be a source of inconsistency in the results of research studies.

Quality assessment of interpretative commenting and competency comparison of comment providers in China

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (6) ◽  
pp. 832-837 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuzhu Huang ◽  
Wei Wang ◽  
Haijian Zhao ◽  
Yuxuan Du ◽  
Jiali Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Assessment ◽  
External Quality Assessment ◽  
Scoring Method ◽  
External Quality ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Clinical Laboratories ◽  
Tertiary Hospitals ◽  
Professional Title ◽  
Interpretative Comments

Abstract Background This study aimed to evaluate the ability of comment providers who were responsible for interpreting results in clinical laboratories in China and to improve the quality of interpretative comments. Methods Basic information and interpretative comments for five cases of 1912 routine chemistry External Quality Assessment (EQA) participant laboratories were collected by web-based EQA system in May 2018. EQA organizers assigned scores to each key phrase of comments based on predetermined marking scale and calculated total scores for each participant’s answer. Final scores and ranking were calculated according to scores of cases. Finally, we comprehensively analyzed the type of hospital and the professional title of participants. Results In total, 772 clinical laboratories, 1472 participants, from different Chinese provinces submitted interpretative comments. Median scores, interquartile ranges and score ranges of the five cases were 13 (11–15, 1–20), 13 (10–16, 0–20), 15 (12–17, 0–21), 7 (5–9, −2 to 14) and 12 (10–13, −2 to 18). The final scores and ranking of participants that came from tertiary hospitals were higher than those from secondary and other hospitals; however, there were no significant differences (0.774). When grouped by professional title, we found that although no significant variability existed among senior, intermediate, junior and others (0.699), it existed between laboratory physicians and technicians, as the median final scores of the former were higher than the latter. Conclusions Practice and quality of interpretative comments are indeed different among different laboratories and participants in China. Laboratories should train and assess the interpretative ability of personnel. EQA organizers should also improve the scoring method and establish peer assessors team through this survey.

scholarly journals Between-Lot Variation in External Quality Assessment of Glucose: Clinical Importance and Effect on Participant Performance Evaluation

2005 ◽  
Vol 51 (9) ◽  
pp. 1632-1636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gunn BB Kristensen ◽  
Nina Gade Christensen ◽  
Geir Thue ◽  
Sverre Sandberg
Keyword(s):  
Quality Assessment ◽  
Simulation Study ◽  
External Quality Assessment ◽  
Clinical Importance ◽  
Capillary Blood ◽  
External Quality ◽  
Quality Of Control ◽  
Target Values ◽  
Assessment Results

Abstract Background: External quality assessment schemes (EQAS) are conducted to evaluate user performance (participant assessment) and to assess different methods and instruments (method assessment). The quality of control materials is crucial to achieving these goals. Inconsistencies in between-lot variations detected by use of different control and sample materials may affect EQAS outcomes. Methods: For the Accu-Chek Sensor, Precision Xtra, Ascensia Elite, and HemoCue 201 glucometers, 3 different lots of glucose strips were used with each instrument. Method assessment results from analysis of capillary blood and 3 control materials were used to calculate between-lot differences. A simulation study was performed to evaluate the effect of between-lot variation on participant assessment results. Results: With the Precision Xtra, the results obtained with EQA control material mirrored those obtained with capillary blood, but for the other instruments, we found between-lot differences of as much as 1.3 mmol/L, which were substantially greater than those found with capillary blood and of clinical importance at decision limits. The simulation study showed an effect on participant assessment results related to the target values, with the percentage of poor results decreasing (38%, 10%, and 4%) with the use of common, method-specific, and lot-specific target values, respectively. Conclusions: Between-lot variation may influence participant EQA results for participant and method assessments. The clinical relevance of between-lot variation discovered in EQAS using noncommutable control materials should be examined by use of native blood samples.

scholarly journals Spanish society of laboratory medicine external quality assurance programmes: evolution of the analytical performance of clinical laboratories over 30 years and comparison with other programmes

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen Perich ◽  
Carmen Ricós ◽  
Fernando Marqués ◽  
Joana Minchinela ◽  
Angel Salas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Assurance ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Laboratory Medicine ◽  
Analytical Performance ◽  
External Quality Assurance ◽  
Biological Variability ◽  
External Quality ◽  
Spanish Society ◽  
Clinical Laboratories ◽  
Quality Specifications

AbstractThe purpose of this study is to understand the evolution of the analytical performance of the laboratories participating in the Spanish society of laboratory medicine (SEQCML) external quality assurance (EQA) programmes during its 30 years of operation and to compare it with the performance of other EQA programmes to establish whether the results are similar. The results obtained during this period are evaluated by applying the biological variability (BV) and state of the art-derived quality specifications. In addition, the results are compared with those obtained by other EQA programme organisations. It is noted that the laboratories participating in the EQA–SEQCML programmes have improved their performance over 30 years of experience and that the specifications derived from biological variation are achievable. It is difficult to compare EQA programmes, due to lack of accessibility and the differences in the design of these programmes (control materials, calculations used and analytical specifications established). The data from this study show that for some biological magnitudes the results obtained by the programmes are not yet harmonised, although efforts are being made to achieve this. Organisers of EQA programmes should also join the harmonisation effort by providing information on their results to enable comparison.

scholarly journals External Quality Assessment in the Evaluation of Laboratory Performance of Faecal Culture

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 117863611769125
Author(s):  
Salla J Kiiskinen ◽  
Tarja Ojanen ◽  
Yvonne Björkman ◽  
Harri Laitinen ◽  
Anja Siitonen
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Quality Control ◽  
External Quality Assessment ◽  
False Negative ◽  
The Other ◽  
Epidemiological Surveillance ◽  
External Quality Control ◽  
External Quality ◽  
Faecal Culture

In Finland, all laboratories carrying out diagnostics of infectious diseases in humans are approved by the Regional State Administrative Agencies and are obligated to participate in External Quality Assurance rounds. Performance in these rounds is thought to reflect the quality of laboratory work. In the 6-year study period, 17 Finnish laboratories received 48 simulated faecal specimens for the culturing of diarrhoeal pathogens, yielding altogether 586 faecal culture External Quality Control specimens and 581 reports. The results were correct in 92% of all reports and in 67% of all specimens. False-negative Salmonella results were given for 2 of the 18 specimens, one with biochemically atypical Salmonella strain and the other with a low count of Salmonella cells. False-negative Shigella report was given for 6 of the 7 specimens in some participating laboratory. Detection of all common faecal pathogens is especially relevant to patient safety, public health, and epidemiological surveillance.

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