IQMH Centre for Proficiency Testing will be participating in the 2020 AACC Annual Scientific & Clinical Lab Expo all virtual event (December 13–17). See the Event Schedule.
Evaluation of Proficiency Testing/External Quality Assessment Results and Developing Preventive and Corrective Actions
Berna Aslan, MD, MSc, DABCC, FCACB, Institute for Quality Management in Healthcare
Session Overview: This roundtable will discuss the evaluation of proficiency testing (PT) results, how to recognize issues before they become significant and how to properly address unacceptable PT outcomes. The presentation will include sample cases for discussion with participants. In addition to regular PT programs IQMH also provides participants with a unique Discordant Findings Investigation (DFI) program. This program is a structured investigative approach for unacceptable PT results from data derived from participants’ responses. Responses are reviewed by scientific committees, and committee comments are issued to provide educational feedback to participants. In this roundtable, frequently experienced challenges causing unacceptable PT outcomes based on DFI will be presented as case studies and appropriate actions will be discussed. After this session, participants will be able to evaluate PT testing results in the context of a PT program design, explain how to identify issues with PT before they become significant, and summarize how to perform an appropriate discordant finding result investigation.
The Need for Standardized Measurement and Practices in Urine Albumin Testing: Lessons from the IQMH Proficiency Testing Program
Paul Yip, PhD, DABCC, FCACB, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
Session Overview: The international community has called for standardization in measuring and reporting urine albumin. Thus, laboratories should support the assessment of chronic kidney disease through accurate results for two important biomarkers, creatinine and albumin. Although less attention has been paid to the latter, the accuracy of urine albumin results is equally necessary for positive patient outcomes. This roundtable will include a discussion of analytical performance and current practices from the IQMH proficiency testing surveys that could impact the quality of results for urine albumin and the albumin-creatinine ratio. Participants will engage in a critical appraisal of the total testing process from physiological and analytical factors to cut-offs that impact the test, including point-of-care testing (POCT). The remainder of the session will provide an update on the current status of global efforts to standardize urine albumin measurements through the development of reference materials and a LC-MS/MS reference measurement procedure. After this session, participants will be able to: Explain the challenges of reporting accurate urine albumin results. List the strengths and weaknesses of various methods for urinary albumin. Outline the proposed reference measurement system and materials to support its standardization.