Proficiency Testing (PT) is an essential component of a good quality management system for laboratories. In addition it is an essential element of accreditation guidelines such as ISO 17025 and ISO 15189. Thistle QA has been operating PTs since 1990 from Johannesburg. With an initial data base of less than 30 laboratories on a single PT (or External Quality Assessment scheme, EQA) it now has over 3000 participating laboratories on about 40 PT schemes, with data reaching it from over 60 countries worldwide. This presentation will look at the changes in performance seen in pathology laboratories during participation on PTs. Most labs now achieve the "industry standard of performance" (ISP) as specified in the percentage acceptable range, or clinical CV. In general, those that do fail, rectify their performance within one cycle of performance. PT is an essential mechanism for external benchmarking of performance against other laboratories, and, more importantly, against the expectations of users of the laboratory service. However, continuous quality improvement is not sustainable and it is more realistic to achieve the quality required by clients. In the case of pathology labs, this is the quality that allows medical practitioners to practice good medicine.
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