By Robert Maynard, PhD, NRCC
When it comes to uncovering laboratory quality or compliance issues, have you ever uttered the words, “You did what?!” If so, you’re not alone! That’s the topic of Tuesday afternoon’s must-attend scientific session, titled, “You did what now? Addressing questionable laboratory practices.”
Led by moderator and speaker Jacqueline Hubbard, PhD, DABCC, this session builds on the success of last year’s presentation with the same title. But don’t be fooled. The session will offer all new cases with an emphasis on CAP checklist failures and noncompliance issues. “This year we tried to focus more on problems that we’ve all had,” Hubbard says.
She was inspired by conversations she had with fellow session speakers Aaron Geno, PhD, DABCC, and Grace Williams, PhD. They reflected on their own experiences as well as stories shared by colleagues, especially those just starting out in their careers or transitioning into their first roles after fellowship. “Talk to your friends in the field,” Geno says. “While the stories we’re sharing are experiences that may be unique to their laboratories and directors, the problems they illustrate are not.”
Hubbard will kick off the session by detailing many common but persistent challenges clinical laboratorians face. For instance, she’ll note how the quality assurance practices for hemolysis, icterus, and lipemia (HIL) indices can vary wildly between laboratories and even within the same hospital system. Williams and Geno will cover other relevant topics, including laboratory information system (LIS) mapping errors. They’ll review previously approved validation data and share a case of retrospective data analysis that revealed quality and compliance issues.
Given the diversity of examples that will be discussed, this session is sure to resonate with everyone in attendance and lead to plenty of discussion. It was designed to be interactive, pairing didactic presentations with small-group discussions that will give attendees a wide array of ideas and strategies to navigate real-world laboratory challenges. “I’m always amazed by the creativity within our field,” Geno says, “and it’s likely that participants will get the benefit of hearing from peers and colleagues who look at problems in completely different ways than their own.”
Attendees will leave feeling empowered and equipped to identify, assess, and resolve regulatory challenges at their current and future institutions. “This is the entire point of the session: We’re all fighting these fires alone because we think that we’re the only ones with this problem, but it turns out we all have the same problems,” Geno says. “Maybe instead of all of us struggling individually, we can come up with solutions together.”
Lastly, if you are on the fence about whether to attend because you haven’t yet faced these issues, consider this: you will, the speakers agree. So, whether you are an upcoming laboratory director or a seasoned laboratorian, you don’t want to miss this session that promises to deliver a little something for everyone.
