Workshop 16

CPA: a sideways look

Dr Jonathan Berg

The accreditation process should be well established as part of the clinical laboratory scene and indeed accreditation can now be considered as mandatory. However for many laboratories the six months before inspection still sees a mad panic to 'get up to speed' followed by a period of decline and standards slip in the intervening years. We need put systems in place which enable us to not only achieve CPA accreditation but that are achievable in the longer term.

This workshop will look at practical ways of approaching standards in all areas of the laboratory. Traditional CPA inspection fire fighting is replaced with practical ways of achieving CPA standards. For example the QA committee of two or three meeting in the laboratory seminar room is now a monthly meeting round the QA noticeboard. Pathology Clinical Governance will become fun and even difficult standards slip into place. For CPA heaven on a Birmingham canal .... what more could you want after the Congress Banquet.