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Methods of evaluation of interlaboratory comparison results are prescribed by ISO standards. Ruler is probably one of the most widely used length measuring instrument in the world. For laboratories that plan to be accredited for the calibration of Ruler, the acquisition of a specialized Measuring bench is not economically feasible. Confidence in the measured result depends on the measurement uncertainty, and where deficiencies are observed, the values that contribute to the measurement uncertainty should be investigated. This paper describes an interlaboratory comparison for a small number of laboratories on the example of a Measuring bench for calibrating Ruler and indicates the procedure for problem identification; diagnosis of causes; consideration of solutions; initiation of action for improvement and monitoring of the results of applied solutions. The authors documented the problem and listed the elements that contributed to "Unsatisfactory" result in interlaboratory comparisons. They described the actions they took to overcome the "Unsatisfactory" result, analyzed whether the proposed solutions led to "Satisfactory" result and took actions accordingly. The paper presents the results of the international interlaboratory comparison, which are a confirmation of the competence of the personnel, measuring calibration equipment and calibration method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Healthcare organizations are always on their way to improve the Quality of Healthcare Services and Safety of Patient. Accreditation can be used to achieve this goal. In the Scientifical literature accreditation is defined as a voluntary chosen tool, which includes the Regulation and improvement of the Processes of the Organizations, to improve the quality. It‘s impossible to achieve the Goal of Accreditation without involvement of employees. This Article analyzes the point of view of healthcare Professional about the Impact of Accreditation on the Quality of Healthcare services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Globally, all medical laboratories seeking accreditation should meet international quality standards to perform certain specific tests. Quality management program provides disciplines targeted to ensure that quality standards have been implemented by a laboratory in order to generate correct results. The hallmark of the accreditation process is method verification and quality assurance. Before introducing a new method in your laboratory, it is important to assess certain performance characteristics that reflect the concept of method verification. Methods: In this review, we illustrated how to verify the performance characteristics of a new method according to the recent guidelines. It includes an assessment of precision, trueness, analytical sensitivity, detection limits, analytical specificity, interference, measuring range, linearity, and measurement uncertainty. Conclusions: Although the presence of several updated guidelines used to determine the performance characteristics of new methods in clinical chemistry laboratories, the real practice raised several concerns with the application of these guidelines which in need for further consideration in the upcoming updates of these guidelines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thanks to its content, and primarily due to that of nutrient materials, meat can be found nearly daily in the diet of humans. Predictions indicate that the upcoming period expects to see a rise in both the production and consumption of meat worldwide. However, in addition to satisfying the needs of the consumers in terms of the quantity of meat, it is also important to satisfy their needs when it comes to quality, meat safety, and the reliability of the information provided. Furthermore, it is in the interest of the consumer that the testing of the meat be carried out in accredited laboratories in line with SRPS ISO/IEC 17025:2017. Bearing in mind the great number of parameters which are tested with the aim of determining quality, safety, and meat authenticity, it is the goal of this paper to analyse the capacities of the accredited laboratories for carrying out such tests. By applying the methodology (the Accreditation Body of Serbia's website was searched), it was determined that 58 laboratories in Serbia have at least one, but more commonly multiple accredited methods which each laboratory can use in order to examine several of the parameters for safety and/or meat quality. It was determined that the capacities of the laboratories, in both the private and the public sectors, for testing the parameters of meat quality and safety in Serbia were sufficient, particularly for the parameters of meat safety which, according to research, is the area which worries consumers the most. What should definitely be a joint task for testing laboratories and the state competent authorities is the development of methods through which meat fraud could be detected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Accreditation is a procedure for evaluating the quality of work of a health care institution. It is based on the application of the optimal level of established work standards on health care institutions in a particular area of health care (branch of medicine). As health care professionals are the main carriers during the accreditation process of healthcare institutions, it is very important to evaluate the structure and gain insight into the most important components of their positions regarding accreditation, prior to starting this process. Methods: The study was conducted in two secondary and tertiary level hospitals, one of which is accredited and the other is not. It was designed as an observational study and included a survey of two groups of respondents. The experimental group consisted of employees of a hospital where the process of accreditation had been conducted, while the control group consisted of employees of a hospital where the process of accreditation had not been conducted yet. The survey used an original questionnaire that consists of 23 questions as a tool for measuring the health care professionals' attitudes on accreditation. The data reduction and structural validity evaluation of the aforementioned instrument was performed by principal component analysis, while its relativity was evaluated using the Cronbach's alpha coeffi cient. Results: The Questionnaire on Health Care Professionals' Attitudes on Accreditation with the resulting 10 questions has high structural validity (Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of adequacy = 0.909). The total Cronbach's alpha was 0.916. By analysing the main components of the extracted ten questions, three factors (components) were identifi ed: (1) the Attitude on the Positive Long-Term Impacts of Accreditation on the Planning, Implementation and Changes of the Overall Concept of Health Care, (2) the Attitude on Increasing Professional Affi rmation and Improving Work Morale, and (3) the Attitude on Improving Communication and Safety at Work. Health care professionals employed in a hospital that had completed the accreditation had signifi cantly more positive attitudes about the process in all of the aforementioned components compared to employees of a hospital that had not completed the accreditation process. Conclusions: The Questionnaire on Health Care Professionals' Attitudes on Accreditation has high content and structural validity. By applying it prior to the hospital's accreditation process, potential positive resources within the institution could be assessed, resulting from the positive attitudes of healthcare professionals about accreditation. Also, with this instrument, potential barriers to the successful implementation of accreditation could be assessed, resulting from the predominantly negative attitudes of health professionals about the accreditation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background/Aim. Discoloration of dental restorations makes them aesthetically unacceptable and is a frequent reason for replacement of composite restorations. The aim of this study was to evaluate changes of color and fluorescence of resin-based composites (RBCs) exposed to natural juices and energy drinks. Methods. Microhybrid composite Gradia DirectTM Extra Bleach White disc-shaped specimens (n = 35) were immersed in three different natural juices and four different energy drinks. Absorption spectra of natural juices and energy drinks, diffuse reflection and fluorescence of composite samples were measured prior and after seven- day immersion by spectrophotometer Thermo Evolution 600 and spectrofluorometer Fluorolog-3-221. Composite's color was calculated from diffuse reflection spectra and expressed in CIELAB color space (Commission International de l'Eclairage). Results. All natural juices and energy drinks induced color change of resin based composites, but to the different extent. Only aronia and carrot juices induced total color change considerably higher than clinically acceptable threshold, 9.3 and 6.2, respectively. All energy drinks and aronia juice induced notable decrease in fluorescence; the highest change of 28% was evidenced in the case of aronia juice. Conclusion. Change of color and fluorescence will appear differently with various solutions due to different chemical composition and concentration of colorant species in different beverages. Solutions with higher optical absorption induced higher total color change. Discoloration of composites in aronia and carrot juices is similar to those earlier reported for red wine, tea and coffee. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One and key of the priorities in laboratory medicine is improvement of quality management system for patient safety. Quality in the health care is tightly connected to the level of excellence of the health care provided in relation to the current level of knowledge and technical development. Accreditation is an effective way to demonstrate competence of the laboratory, a tool to recognize laboratories world-wide, is linked to periodical audits, to stimulate the maintenance and improvement of the quality, which leads to high standard of services for clients (patients, health care providers, etc.). The strategic plans of IFCC and EFLM include focusing on accreditation of labs based on ISO standards and cooperation with European Accreditation and national accreditation bodies. IFCC and EFLM recognised that ISO 15189:2012 Medical laboratories - Requirements for quality and competence, encompasses all the assessment criteria specified in the policy of quality. The last version is oriented to process approach with detailed division and clearly defined requirements. The accreditation of labs improves facilitation of accurate and rapid diagnostics, efficiency of treatment and reduction of errors in the laboratory process. Accreditation is not about who the best is, but who has a system of standard procedures with aim to improve the quality and patient safety. Quality system is about people, with people and for people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The multifaceted clinical laboratory process is divided in three essential phases: the preanalytical, analytical and postanalytical phase. Problems emerging from the preanalytical phase are responsible for more than 60% of laboratory errors. This report is aimed at highlighting and discussing nonconformity (e.g., nonstandardized procedures) in primary blood tube mixing immediately after blood collection by venipuncture with evacuated tube systems. Methods: From January 2015 to December 2015, fifty different laboratory quality managers from Brazil were contacted to request their internal audit reports on nonconformity regarding primary blood tube mixing immediately after blood collection by venipuncture performed using evacuated tube systems. Results and Conclusions: A minority of internal audits (i.e., 4%) concluded that evacuated blood tubes were not accurately mixed after collection, whereas more than half of them reported that evacuated blood tubes were vigorously mixed immediately after collection, thus magnifying the risk of producing spurious hemolysis. Despite the vast majority of centers declaring that evacuated blood tubes were mixed gently and carefully, the overall number of inversions was found to be different from that recommended by the manufacturer. Since the turbulence generated by the standard vacuum pressure inside the primary evacuated tubes seems to be sufficient for providing solubilization, mixing and stabilization between additives and blood during venipuncture, avoidance of primary tube mixing probably does not introduce a major bias in tests results and may not be considered a nonconformity during audits for accreditation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Professor, habil. Doctor Social Science (Educology) Vilnius University Universiteto str. 3, LTLT-01513 Vilnius, Lithuania Tel. (+370 5) 268 70 01 E-mail: infor@cr.vu.lt Bachelor of Arts, cum laude Master of Education Klaipeda College Dariaus ir Girėno str. 8, LTLT-92255 Klaipėda, Lithuania E-mail: arasvebra@yahoo.com Lietuvos švietimo koncepcija (1992) pabrėžia kokybės veiksnį. Siekiant kokybės, reikia, kad mokytojai mokytųsi nuolat. Ilgalaikė Valstybinė švietimo strategija 2003–2012 m. (2003) tai patvirtina. Šiame darbe stengtasi keliais aspektais apibendrinti profesinio tobulinimo vertinimo vyksmą. Palyginti vertinimo sistema ir teoriniai modeliai, apžvelgti moksliniai šaltiniai ir diskusijos ir tai, kaip jie pritaikomi Lietuvoje. Imti interviu su ekspertais ir focus grupėmis siekiant nustatyti profesinio tobulinimo vertinimo apimtį, našumą ir galimas tobulinimo kryptis. Kol atestuojant bus „įskaitomi“ tik lankyti renginiai, tol jų poveikis moksleivių pasiekimams bus nerealus, profesinio tobulinimo ir geresnio mokymo koreliacija bus iš dalies atsitiktinė. Profesinio tobulinimo vertinimas netikslus dėl to, kad nediferencijuojami rezultatai ir tam abejingi respondentai. Išorinių ekspertų vertinimas mokslininkų traktuojamas kaip nepakankamas vertinimo būdas. Užsienyje pripažinti modeliai (aprašyti edukologų Fullan, Hargreaves ir Guskey) kol kas netaikomi, nors tam sukurtos prielaidos. Jau Tautinės mokyklos koncepcijoje (1989) nurodyta, jog profesinio tobulinimo renginiai turi būti vertinami. Tačiau tuo metu nebuvo aiškios metodikos, kaip tai padaryti. Dabar metodikos žinomos, belieka pasinaudoti teoriniu pagrindu, teisine baze ir administracinėmis priemonėmis bei lėšomis, reikalingomis, kad į vertinimus būtų atsižvelgta ir planuojama. Šis tyrimas atskleidžia, kad nestinga ir vienintelio (svarbiausio) elemento – pedagogų bei rengėjų geros valios.

Copyright of Socialno Delo is the property of Socialno Delo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Socialno Delo is the property of Socialno Delo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Singidunum Journal of Applied Sciences is the property of Singidunum University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Singidunum Journal of Applied Sciences is the property of Singidunum University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Croatian & Comparative Public Administration is the property of Institut za Javnu Upravu and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Economics & Business is the property of Sciendo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Introduction: ISO 15189 was a new standard published in 2003 for accrediting medical laboratories. We believe that some requirements of the ISO 15189 standard are especially diffi cult to meet for majority of laboratories. The aim of this article was to present the frequency of nonconformities to requirements of the ISO 15189 accreditation standard, encountered during the assessments of medical laboratories in Hong Kong, during 2004 to 2009. Materials and methods: Nonconformities reported in assessments based on ISO 15189 were analyzed in two periods - from 2004 to 2006 and in 2009. They are categorized according to the ISO 15189 clause numbers. The performance of 27 laboratories initially assessed between 2004 and 2006 was compared to their performance in the second reassessment in 2009. Results: For management requirements, nonconformities were most frequently reported against quality management system, quality and technical records and document control; whereas for technical requirements, they were reported against examination procedures, equipment, and assuring quality of examination procedures. There was no major diff erence in types of common nonconformities reported in the two study periods. The total number of nonconformities reported in the second reassessment of 27 laboratories in 2009 was almost halved compared to their initial assessments. The number of signifi cant nonconformities per laboratory signifi cantly decreased (P = 0.023). Conclusions: Similar nonconformities were reported in the two study periods though the frequency encountered decreased. The signifi cant decrease in number of signifi cant nonconformities encountered in the same group of laboratories in the two periods substantiated that ISO15189 contributed to quality improvement of accredited laboratories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterogeneity exists across Europe in the definition of the profession of clinical chemistry and laboratory medicine and also in academic background of specialists in this discipline. This article provides an overview of the standards of education and training of laboratory professionals and quality regulations in Croatia. Clinical chemistry in Croatia is almost exclusively practiced by medical biochemists. Although term Medical biochemist often relates to medical doctors in other European countries, in Croatia medical biochemists are not medical doctors, but university degree professionals who are qualified scientifically. Practicing the medical biochemistry is regulated by The Health Care Law, The Law of the Medical Biochemistry Profession and The Law of the State and Private Health Insurance. According to the law, only medical biochemists are entitled to run and work in the medical biochemistry laboratory. University degree is earned after the 5 years of the studies. Register for medical biochemists is kept by the Croatian Chamber of Medical Biochemists. Licensing is mandatory, valid for 6 years and regulated by the government (Law on the Health Care, 1993). Vocational training for medical biochemists lasts 44 months and is regulated by the national regulatory document issued by the Ministry of Health. Accreditation is not mandatory and is provided by an independent, non-commercial national accreditation body. The profession has interdisciplinary character and a level of required competence and skills comparable to other European countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

At the beginning of the 21st century there are defined priorities in laboratory medicine such as laboratory automation, laboratory consolidation, molecular diagnostics, and accreditation of laboratories aiming to improve the quality of patient care. Laboratory medicine is backbone in the medical treatment, diagnosis and prevention. Laboratory diagnostics influences 70-80% of hospital health care decisions and costs between 3-5% of total health care costs. Laboratory attempts to improve quality aim to reduce diagnostic errors and decrease turn around time with traceability of all laboratory procedures. Concerning quality, the strategic plans of IFCC and EFCC include focusing of accreditation of labs based on ISO standards and cooperation with European Accreditation and national accreditation bodies. IFCC recognises that ISO 15189:2007 - Medical laboratories - Particular requirements for quality and competence, encompasses all the assessment criteria specified in the policy statement and as such should form the basis for the accreditation of laboratories. There are also different systems in EU countries based on national quality systems which are based on ISO 15189. Accreditation is not about who the best is, but who has a system of standard procedures. Quality system is about people, with people and for people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Laboratories accredited according to ISO 15189 standard which have two or more different analyzers or procedures for examinations, should define mechanism for comparison of results. The objective of this study was to present the model for comparison of emergency tests on two different types of automated general biochemistry analyzers. Materials and methods: General biochemistry emergency tests were measured in serum and urine on two automated analyzers Olympus AU2700 and Olympus AU640 (Olympus, Hamburg, Germany) during 60 day period. Olympus AU2700 was used as the reference analyzer and Olympus AU640 as a backup system. Control samples on two levels were used for result comparison. Results: Average 60-day period bias was within acceptance criteria for all analyzes included in this model of comparability assessment. Only low control concentrations for some tests were exceeding allowable biases in less than 2% cases and high level controls were never exceeding allowable biases. Conclusions: This model of results comparison ensures continuous analytical quality of laboratory reports and improves overall efficiency of laboratory services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Total Quality Management (TQM) is a specific approach to the art of management in a company that aims to provide its customers with products and services that fully meet their needs. Implementing TQM means introducing the quality management system, defining the quality policy and procedures which are essential quality assurance and quality control instruments. One of the critical elements of such systems is a concept of continuous improvement and quality indicators. Quality indicators are measurable, objective, quantitative measures of key system elements performance. They indicate the extent up to which a certain system meets the needs and expectations of the customers. Every clinical laboratory accredited according to the current standard for medical laboratories is obliged to systematically monitor and evaluate its quality indicators. Quality indicators should have clear and unambiguous definition and interpretation, whereas the ability to measure the indicator is a prerequisite for its successful implementation, reproducible application, monitoring and evaluation. They can indicate the quality of the key, strategic, and support processes. It is important that quality indicators address all three key processes in the laboratory: preanalytical, analytical and postanalytical. Besides for self-evaluation, quality indicators can also be used for benchmarking. While proficiency testing and inter laboratory comparison are well established for quite sometime, until the last two decades some preanalytical and postanalytical external quality assurance programs have also been launched and successfuly implemented in several countries. In this review general idea and concept of quality indicators is presented and some important issues discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Acta Paedagogica Vilnensia is the property of Vilnius University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

International standard ISO 15189:2003 requires that laboratories comply with requirements for quality management and technical requirements, including pre-and post-analytical phases, as well as the analytical process itself. Topics such as laboratory safety and medical laboratory ethics are also included. As local, national and regional regulations may apply, ISO 15189:2003 requires that medical laboratories demonstrate their competence to a third party assessor, which is usually a national accreditation body. In Mexico, the government has appointed the Mexican Accreditation Entity (EMA), to accredit medical laboratories in accordance to ISO 15189:2003; this organization works in close cooperation with the Mexican Association of Clinical Biochemistry (AMBC). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Quality of Higher Education is the property of Vytautas Magnus University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Quality of Higher Education is the property of Vytautas Magnus University and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)