Introduction To Quality Management System In Histopathology Laboratory-2

All activities in the Histopathology Laboratory like any other Medical Laboratory is geared towards the generation of high quality laboratory results which must be reliable and timely.  The quality of slides released by the Histopathology laboratory must meet top quality standard and expectations of clients which include Physicians, Pathologists, Patients and the Public.

The operations in the Histopathology Laboratory therefore must be well organized, controlled and in a well laid out process and procedure.

The quality management system model is the appropriate tool to actualize the crave and necessity for quality results.

12 ESSENTIAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM TOOLS

There are twelve essential tools in a quality management system model according to the ISO 15189 and CLSI specification.  These tools ensure that all activities, processes, procedures are well coordinated to drive policies, detect errors and guarantee safety of personnel.

ORGANISATION

A practical way to have a well organized histopathology laboratory is to have a quality manager to establish and implement quality management system policies and requirements.  The manager must be supported by the Management of the organization and other senior laboratory officials e.g. Laboratory Manager/CEO.

The quality manager will be saddled with the responsibility to implement, allocate resources, develop and distribute a quality manual, begin implementation, and monitor compliance with the quality policy and the quality management system requirements.

 PERSONNEL

Personnel constitute the most important resource in the histopathology laboratory. The laboratory manager must ensure that qualified, competent, licensed staffs across all cadres are recruited to work in the histopathology laboratory.

Core staff compliment in the histopathology laboratory should be Medical Laboratory Scientists, Medical Laboratory Technicians and Medical Laboratory Assistants.  Support staff such as messengers, cleaners and secretarial staff should also be considered.

For core staff, job description must be well laid out in the scheme of service (SOS) highlighting all cadres of staff. International organizations and non- governmental organizations (NGOs) give job specifications whenever job vacancies are declared through advertisement.

The Director is the overall quality manager.  However, he should assign  the duty of quality control to another senior officer. Very important areas of interest regarding personnel issues include:

Importance of Motivation

People respond to motivation in different ways.  Staff should be given recognition for performance, bonuses, and training opportunities/sponsorship.

Orientation

A new staff should be introduced to the new work environment and the job tasks, duties and schedule in the new place of work. This is vital to adequately cover laboratory structure, policies, procedures, processes, practice and other sundry issues. A well orientated staff is an asset to the histopathology laboratory.

Job description with an overview on standard operating procedures (SOP) should also be part of the brief for the employee.

Competency Assessment

Personnel assessment is the key to identifying problems with staff performance and provides opportunities to correct the identified skill gaps so as not to negatively affect services.

 EQUIPMENT

Equipment used in the histopathology laboratory must be well specified, appropriate for use and well managed.  When equipment are professionally chosen, it attracts the following benefits:

·         High level of performance

·         Improves the confidence of staff

·         Lowers repair cost

·         Prolongs the life span of the equipment

·         Forestalls interruption of services due to repairs

·         Increases the level of safety for workers and

·         Leads to greater customer satisfaction.

Equipment used in the histopathology laboratory must be planned for.  Due process must be followed in their selection and purchase depending on organizational guidelines.  After purchase, it should be inspected, validated and calibrated for use in the laboratory.

Equipment merchants have agents who install and maintain them.  The manuals must be made available for troubleshooting and good maintenance.

Users of the equipment should be trained and responsibility of their operation should be assigned to a competent staff.  There should be a written plan for calibration, performance verification and proper operation of the equipment.  In the same vein, there is need to establish a daily, weekly and monthly maintenance schedule of the equipment.

It is essential that equipment inventory be made and maintenance logbook designed to capture records of equipment faults, repairs and corrective action taken.  Tools for equipment management such as charts, checklists, graphs and service reports should be generously applied.

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