Biomaterial Database

Quality in pathology laboratory practice. 1995

S Weinstein

Gold Coast Hospital, Southport, Qld, Australia.

Quality refers not only to analytical quality control, a traditional area of laboratory excellence, but to the entire science of quality management. As measures of quality, structural indicators refer to staffing and physical facilities, process indicators to the institutions operations and, perhaps most importantly, outcome indicators address the ultimate patient care uses that pathology information is put to. Comparison of performance to peer laboratories, external quality control, is a practical, if limited, yardstick of performance. Customer satisfaction and turn-around-time of tests are receiving more recent attention as quality measures. Blood banking, because of its inherently complex cycle from donor phlebotomy to product infusion, requires special considerations with regard to quality management. Reporting of anatomical pathology, where the only gold standard is a consensus of experts, also does not lend itself to classical numerical quality assessment.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007755	Laboratories, Hospital	Hospital facilities equipped to carry out investigative procedures.	Hospital Laboratories,Hospital Laboratory,Laboratory, Hospital
D010043	Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care	Evaluation procedures that focus on both the outcome or status (OUTCOMES ASSESSMENT) of the patient at the end of an episode of care - presence of symptoms, level of activity, and mortality; and the process (ASSESSMENT, PROCESS) - what is done for the patient diagnostically and therapeutically.	Outcome and Process Assessment (Health Care),Donabedian Model,Donabedian Triad,Outcome and Process Assessment,Structure Process Outcome Triad,Model, Donabedian,Triad, Donabedian
D010337	Pathology Department, Hospital	Hospital department which administers and provides pathology services.	Hospital Pathology Department,Department, Hospital Pathology,Pathology Departments, Hospital,Departments, Hospital Pathology,Hospital Pathology Departments
D011785	Quality Assurance, Health Care	Activities and programs intended to assure or improve the quality of care in either a defined medical setting or a program. The concept includes the assessment or evaluation of the quality of care; identification of problems or shortcomings in the delivery of care; designing activities to overcome these deficiencies; and follow-up monitoring to ensure effectiveness of corrective steps.	Quality Assessment, Health Care,Health Care Quality Assessment,Health Care Quality Assurance,Healthcare Quality Assessment,Healthcare Quality Assurance,Quality Assessment, Healthcare,Quality Assurance, Healthcare,Assessment, Healthcare Quality,Assessments, Healthcare Quality,Assurance, Healthcare Quality,Assurances, Healthcare Quality,Healthcare Quality Assessments,Healthcare Quality Assurances,Quality Assessments, Healthcare,Quality Assurances, Healthcare
D011786	Quality Control	A system for verifying and maintaining a desired level of quality in a product or process by careful planning, use of proper equipment, continued inspection, and corrective action as required. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)	Control, Quality,Controls, Quality,Quality Controls
D011793	Queensland	A state in northeastern Australia. Its capital is Brisbane. Its coast was first visited by Captain Cook in 1770 and its first settlement (penal) was located on Moreton Bay in 1824. The name Cooksland was first proposed but honor to Queen Victoria prevailed. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p996 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p441)
D001771	Blood Banks	Centers for collecting, characterizing and storing blood or plasma.	Bank, Blood,Banks, Blood,Blood Bank
D006653	Histology	The study of the structure of various TISSUES of organisms on a microscopic level.
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D001344	Autopsy	Postmortem examination of the body.	Autopsies,Post-Mortem Examination,Postmortem Examination,Examination, Post-Mortem,Examination, Postmortem,Examinations, Post-Mortem,Examinations, Postmortem,Post Mortem Examination,Post-Mortem Examinations,Postmortem Examinations