External quality assessment of clinical laboratories in the United Kingdom

Abstract

A review is given of the National External Quality Assessment Schemes (NEQASs) in various pathology disciplines in the United Kingdom, with a discussion of the relative roles of the DHSS, individual laboratory scientists, and the relevant professional bodies. Principles of operation and scientific problems in the design of NEQASs in different disciplines are described and contrasted, and some comparisons with the experience in other European countries and the USA are drawn.

Application of the Characteristic Function to Evaluate and Compare Analytical Variability in an External Quality Assessment Scheme for Serum Ethanol

“…Various studies have underlined the advantage of combining results of different EQA rounds or samples (5)(6)(7)(8). Moreover, methods have been published to combine data from different centers or samples of the same target concentration (9 ).…”

Are sperm counts declining? Or did we just change our spectacles?

“…17,18 For example, in the United Kingdom, External Quality Assurance Schemes were established in Clinical Chemistry, Cytology, Endocrinology, Haematology, Histopathology, Microbiology, Pharmacology and Toxicology by the late 1970s, 19 whereas a similar scheme in laboratory andrology was not established until 1994. 20 So when Carlsen et al 2 assured us that sperm counting using haematological methods were robust because no secular change in blood cell counts had been seen, they failed to acknowledge that haematology measurements were already well controlled by their own QA and QC programmes at a time when andrology laboratories were not.…”

The Middle East External Quality Assessment Scheme for Clinical Chemistry

“…has been applied successfully in the UK in clinical chemistry': [6][7][8][9] and in other disciplines of pathology, 4 as well as in other countries such as the Netherlands.!" The primary aim in designing and implementing the ME EQAS was, therefore, to provide the participants with the information required to assess and to improve their own routine performance.…”

“…:' To ensure that results obtained in all laboratories are comparable, however, EQA is an essential and complementary requirement. [1][2][3][4] EQA refers to a system of objectively checking laboratory results by means of an external agency," including comparison of a laboratory's results at intervals with those of other laboratories. Its main objective is to establish between-laboratory comparability through the assessment of performance of individual laboratories, though EQA can also provide assessments of the general situation ('state of the art'), of methods used by participants, and of the specimens distributed; it can also contribute towards the assignment of values to these materials.…”