QUALITY CONTROL IN HISTOPATHOLOGY LABORATORY E.pp

It provides for implementation of quality control measures in histopathology operations

1. QUALITY CONTROL IN HISTOPATHOLOGY LABORATORY 1

2. OUTLINE Summary Introduction Achieving quality control Sample Pathway in Histopathology Phases of quality control Role of special stains Quality Control Measures Conclusion Recommendation References 2

3. SUMMARY Quality control in the Medical laboratory is a statistical process used to monitor and evaluate the analytical process that produces patient results. Quality control refers to the measures that must be included during each assay run to verify that test is working properly. 3

4. INTRODUCTION Quality Control (QC): is the aggregate of processes and techniques to detect, reduce, and correct deficiencies in an analytical process. The aim of quality control is simply to ensure that the results generated by the test are correct. ( Bancroft & Gamble, 2008) 4

5. ACHIEVING QUALITY CONTROL Personnel and training Documentation and records Quality assurance programs Calibration and maintenance of machines Reagents check Use of positive & negative controls External quality assessment (EQA) 5

6. Sample Pathway in Histopathology 6

7. PHASES OF QUALITY CONTROL (Cont’d) Pre Analytical : Specimen collection & handling, tissue fixation & processing, labelling & tracking system. Analytical: Histology staining, SOPs, . Post Analytical : Result interpretation & reporting, guidelines, quality assurance of pathology report, communication with clinicians. (Sharif et al. , 2007) 7

8. ROLE OF SPECIAL STAINS IN QUALITY CONTROL Special stains plays a crucial role in quality control by; Ruling out specific diagnosis Detecting microorganisms like bacteria, fungi and parasites Serving as control for staining protocols Assessing tissue differentiation (Wojewoda & McNamara, 2020) 8

9. QUALITY CONTROL MEASURES Internal Quality Control (IQC): Monitors laboratory processes and testing procedures External Quality Control (EQC): compares laboratory results with other laboratories or reference materials. Proficiency Testing (PT): Evaluates laboratory performance through blinded samples. (WHO, 2011) 9

10. CONCLUSION The laboratory is critical to good medical practice; test results have major role in diagnosis and management of patients. 10

11. RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the quality control related to histopathology laboratory includes; Evaluation of tissue adequacy. Evaluation of slide quality. There is need for histopathology laboratory to establish quality management system both within and outside the laboratory setting. 11

12. SELECTED REFERENCES Bancroft JD, Gamble M. (2008). Theory and Practice of Histological Techniques . 6 th ed. London: Churchill Livingstone Sharif MQ, Mushtaq S, Mamoon N, Jamal S, Luqman M. (2007). Clinician’s responsibility in pre-analytical quality assurance of histopathology. Pak Journal of Medical Sci ; 23 :720-3. Wiwantikit V. (2001). Types and frequency of pre-analytical mistakes in the first Thai ISO 9002: 1994 certified clinical laboratory, a 6 month monitoring. BMC Clinical Pathology ; 1 :5 Wojewoda, C.M., & McNamara, K.M. (2020). Best practice for immunohistochemistry staining. Journal of Histotechnology, 43 (2), 53-63. 12