Laboratory Accreditation

Within the healthcare environment, pathology laboratories provide the foundation for evidence-based treatment and care upon which patients depend. In the UK, it is estimated that up to 70% of patients' diagnoses depend on pathology laboratory tests. With such a vital role within Healthcare, pathology laboratories must ensure that the services they provide are fit for purpose and that opportunities for continuous improvement are readily embraced.

Within the UK, Clinical Pathology Accreditation (UK) Ltd (CPA) is nationally recognised as providing a set of minimum quality standards for pathology laboratories. Similar accreditation schemes exist in Canada, Australia, South Africa and the USA.

National standards, Government initiatives and EU Directives demanding and supporting pathology accreditation have ensured quality assurance implementation has become second nature in laboratory practice. However accreditation is often misinterpreted as simply a compulsory and costly activity. This is due to inefficient paper-based systems and misguided allocation of time and resources. As a result, achieving accreditation becomes a costly overhead and consumes all efforts, thereby suppressing opportunities for continuous improvement.

Q-Pulse has been designed to allow organisations to demonstrate compliance, reduce risk, optimise laboratory processes and present opportunities to continually improve the organisation.

Furthermore, Q-Pulse is the only Quality Management solution to be openly endorsed by Dr. David Burnett, the UK’s foremost authority on laboratory accreditation management and author of the best-selling “A Practical Guide to Accreditation in Laboratory Medicine.”

Click on a job role to find out how Q-Pulse supports your function within the organisation.