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* Objective.--To determine the normative rates of expiration and wastage for units of fresh frozen plasma (FFP) and platelets (PLTs) in hospital communities throughout the United States, and to examine hospital blood bank practices associated with more desirable (lower) rates. Design.--In 3 separate studies, participants in the College of American Pathologists Q-Probes laboratory quality improvement program collected data retrospectively on the numbers of units of FFP and PLTs that expired (outdated) prior to being used and that were wasted due to mishandling. Participants also completed questionnaires describing their hospitals' and blood banks' laboratory and transfusion practices. Setting and Participants.--One thousand six hundred thirty-nine public and private institutions, more than 80% of which were known to be located in the United States. Main Outcome Measures.--Quality indicators of FFP and PLT utilization: the rates of expiration and wastage of units of FFP and PLTs. Results.--Participants submitted data on 8 981 796 units of FFP and PLTs. In all 3 studies, aggregate combined FFP and PLT expiration rates ranged from 5.8% to 6.4% and aggregate combined FFP and PLT wastage rates ranged from 2.0% to 2.5%. Among the top-performing 10% of participants (90th percentile and above), FFP and PLT expiration rates were 0.6% or lower and FFP and PLT wastage rates were 0.5 % or lower. Among the bottom-performing 10% of participants (10th percentile and below), expiration rates were 13.8% or higher and wastage rates were 6.8% or higher. We were unable to associate selected hospital characteristics or blood bank practices with lower rates of FFP and PLT utilization. Conclusions.--The rates of FFP and PLT expiration and wastage vary greatly among hospitals in the United States. Hospital blood bank personnel are capable of achieving FFP and PLT expiration and wastage rates below 1%., To satisfy their obligations to the medical communities they serve, including satisfying the obligation of meeting requirements for hospital accreditation, (1) hospital blood bank managers routinely scrutinize the utilization of [...]

* Objectives.--To determine the normative rates of blood unit crossmatched to transfused (C:T) ratios, red blood cell (RBC) unit wastage, and RBC unit expiration that exist in hospital communities throughout the United States, and to examine hospital blood bank practices associated with more desirable (lower) rates. Design.--In 3 separate studies, participants in the College of American Pathologists Q-Probes laboratory quality improvement program collected data retrospectively on the number of transfusion crossmatches performed in their institutions and the number of RBC-containing units that were transfused into patients, the number of units that expired (outdated) prior to being utilized, and the number that were wasted due to mishandling. Participants also completed questionnaires describing their hospitals' and blood banks' laboratory and transfusion practices. Setting and Participants.--One thousand six hundred thirty-nine public and private institutions, well more than 80% of which were known to be located in the United States. Main Outcome Measures.--Quality indicators of blood utilization (namely, the C:T ratio, the rate of RBC unit expiration, and the rate of RBC unit wastage). Results.--Participants submitted data on 12 288 404 RBC unit transfusions. The C:T ratios were 1.5 or less in the top-performing 10% of participating institutions (90th percentile and above), 1.8 to 1.9 in the midrange of participating institutions (50th percentile), and 2.4 or greater in the bottom-performing 10% of participating institutions (10th percentile and below). Red blood cell unit expiration rates were 0.1% or less at the 90th percentile and above, 0.3% to 0.9% at the 50th percentile, and 3.5% or greater at the 10th percentile and below. Red blood cell unit wastage rates were 0.1% or less at the 90th percentile and above, 0.1% to 0.4% at the 50th percentile, and 0.7% or greater at the 10th percentile and below. Depending on which quality indicator was examined, lower values (ie, better performances) were found in institutions that had fewer than 200 hospital beds, no teaching programs, no on-site full-time medical directors of transfusion services, did not utilize maximum surgical blood order schedules, set C:T threshold goals of 2.0 or less, monitored categories of health care workers responsible for RBC wastage, monitored requests for RBC components by transfusion indication, did not accept short-dated units from blood distribution centers, and if they did accept short-dated units, were allowed to return those units to the distribution centers. Conclusions.--Hospital blood bank personnel can achieve C:T ratios below 2.0, RBC unit expiration rates below 1.0%, and RBC unit wastage rates below 0.5%. Lower C:T ratios and/or RBC unit expiration rates were associated with blood bank personnel setting C:T thresholds of 2.0 or less, monitoring requests for blood components by transfusion indication criteria, monitoring categories of health care workers responsible for blood wastage, not accepting short-dated units from blood distribution centers, and if short-dated units were accepted, being allowed to return those units to the blood distribution center. These practices were not associated with lower blood wastage rates., To satisfy their obligations to the medical communities that they serve, including satisfying the obligation of meeting requirements for hospital accreditation, (1) hospital blood bank managers routinely scrutinize the efficiency [...]

* Objective.--To determine the frequency with which solitary blood culture samples were submitted to laboratories serving small hospitals and to ascertain whether certain hospital practices relating to the performance of blood cultures were associated with lower solitary blood culture rates (SBCRs). Design.--Participants in the College of American Pathologists Q-Probes laboratory quality improvement program collected data prospectively on the numbers of solitary blood culture sets from adult patients submitted to their laboratories and answered questions about their institutions' practice characteristics relating to the collection of blood culture specimens. Setting and Participants.--Three hundred thirty-three public and private institutions with a median occupied bed size of 57. Participants were located in the United States (n = 329), Canada (n = 3), and Australia (n = 1). Main Outcome Measure.--The solitary blood culture rate was defined as the number of instances in which only 1 blood culture venipuncture was performed on an individual patient during a 24-hour period divided by the total number of blood culture venipunctures that were performed during the study period. Results.--Participants submitted data on 132 778 adult patient blood culture sets. The SBCRs were 3.4% or less in the top-performing 10% of participating institutions (90th percentile and above), 12.7% in the midrange of participating institutions (50th percentile), and 42.5% or more in the bottom-performing 10% of participating institutions (10th percentile and below). In half the participating institutions, the SBCRs for inpatients were 8.3% or less and for outpatients, 22% or less. Solitary blood culture rates were lower for institutions in which phlebotomists rather than nonphlebotomists routinely collected blood culture specimens, in which internal policies required drawing at least 2 blood culture sets, in which hospital personnel contacted clinicians when their laboratories received requests for solitary blood culture sets, and in which quality control programs monitored SBCRs routinely. Conclusions.--Hospitals can achieve SBCRs under 5%. Those hospitals with particularly high SBCRs may lower their rates by altering certain institutional practices. (Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2001;125:1290-1294), The likelihood that a standard blood culture specimen container will capture the presence of bacteria in the blood of a septic patient increases with the number of blood samples collected [...]

The consumption of fish appears to lower the risk of death from a heart attack but it is not clear which nutritional component is responsible. Researchers following 1,822 men in the Chicago Western Electric Study found that after 30 years, men who ate 35 grams or more of fish every day had about half the risk of dying from coronary heart disease or heart attack. However, the risk of dying from sudden death was not affected by fish consumption. It is unlikely that n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids are responsible, since they are present in fish in small amounts.

* Context.--Monitoring customer satisfaction is a valuable component of a laboratory quality improvement program. Objective.--To survey the level of physician satisfaction with hospital clinical laboratory services. Design.--Participating institutions provided demographic and practice information and survey results of physician satisfaction with defined aspects of clinical laboratory services, rated on a scale of 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent). Results.--One hundred thirty-eight institutions participated in this study and submitted a total of 4329 physician surveys. The overall satisfaction score for all institutions ranged from 2.9 to 5.0. The median overall score for all participants was 4.1 (10th percentile, 3.6; 90th percentile, 4.5). Physicians were most satisfied with the quality/reliability of results and staff courtesy, with median values of excellent or good ratings of 89.9%. Of the 5 service categories that received the lowest percentage values of excellent/ good ratings (combined scores of 4 and 5), 4 were related to turnaround time for inpatient stat, outpatient stat, routine, and esoteric tests. Surveys from half of the participating laboratories reported that 96% to 100% of physicians would recommend the laboratory to other physicians. The category most frequently selected as the most important category of laboratory services was quality/reliability of results (31.7%). Conclusions.--There continues to be a high level of physician satisfaction and loyalty with clinical laboratory services. Test turnaround times are persistent categories of dissatisfaction and present opportunities for improvement., A high-quality organization meets customers' needs. Clinical laboratory managers often assume they know what customers want (accuracy, precision, speed, economy, etc) and set out to directly measure laboratory performance in [...]

Context.--Hospital accreditors are placing increased emphasis on the timeliness with which critical laboratory results are reported to caregivers. Objective.--To measure the speed of critical result notification at a group of laboratories, identify factors associated with faster reporting, and place findings in the context of the time required to transport and test specimens and to correct critical abnormalities. Design.--Contemporaneous review of 3545 inpatient and emergency department critical result notifications in 121 laboratories enrolled in the College of American Pathologists Q-Probes program. Results.--The median laboratory required a median of 5 minutes for staff to notify someone about a critical result once testing was complete. Laboratories affiliated with smaller institutions (P =.01), rural laboratories (P =.001), and sites that called results before releasing them from the laboratory computer (P =.02) were able to notify caregivers more quickly. There was variation among institutions in the time it took to notify caregivers (interquartile range, 1.5-8 minutes). At the median facility, notification took place 56.5 minutes after the specimen had been collected. Conclusions.--The time required to notify caregivers of critical laboratory result is a small proportion of the time taken to collect and test specimens or the time that has been reported for caregivers to correct abnormalities. Although failure to notify caregivers of critical results may represent an important patient safety vulnerability, the timeliness of laboratory notification is a minor contributor to total test turnaround time at most institutions., Many physicians believe that timely notification of critical laboratory results can pivotally affect patient outcome. (1) Sometimes referred to as critical values or panic values, critical results generally comprise less [...]

Context.--The manual microscopic examination (MME) of the urine sediment is an imprecise and labor-intensive procedure. Many laboratories have developed rules from clinical parameters or urinalysis results to limit the number of these examinations. Objective.--To determine the rate of urinalysis specimens on which an MME of the urine sediment was performed, document how various rules influence this rate, and determine whether any new information was learned from the MME. Design.--Participants selected 10 random urinalysis tests received during each traditional shift and determined if an MME was performed until a total of 50 urinalysis tests with an MME were reviewed. Participants recorded the rules that elicited an MME and any new information learned from such an examination. Results.--The MME rate for the median institution was 62.5%. An MME of urine was most frequently done for an abnormal urinalysis result and often resulted in new information being learned, irrespective of the rule that elicited the MME. The median institution learned new information as a result of the manual examination 66% of the time. The use of an automated microscopic analyzer was associated with fewer manual examinations (P = .005), whereas the ability of a clinician to order a manual examination was associated with more manual examinations (P = .004). Conclusions.--The use of an automated microscopic analyzer may decrease the number of MMEs. An MME when triggered by an abnormal macroscopic appearance of urine, a physician request, or virtually any positive urinalysis result often resulted in new information., The traditional urinalysis is composed of 2 parts, the dipstick to measure several analytes and the manual microscopic examination (MME) of the urine sediment. The microscopic examination of urine sediment [...]

* Context.--Accurate specimen identification is critical for quality patient care. Improperly identified specimens can result in delayed diagnosis, additional laboratory testing, treatment of the wrong patient for the wrong disease, and severe transfusion reactions. Specimen identification errors have been reported to occur at rates of 0.1% to 5%. Objective.--To determine the frequency of labeling errors in a multi-institutional survey. Design.--Labeling errors were categorized as: (1) mislabeled, (2) unlabeled, (3) partially labeled, (4) incompletely labeled, and (5) illegible label. Blood specimens for routine or stat chemistry, hematology, and coagulation testing were included. Labeling error rates were calculated for each participant and tested for associations with institutional demographic and practice variable information. Results.--More than 3.3 million specimen labels were reviewed by 147 laboratories. Labeling errors were identified at a rate of 0.92 per 1000 labels. Two variables were statistically associated with lower labeling error rates: (1) laboratories with current, ongoing quality monitors for specimen identification (P = .008) and (2) institutions with 24/7 phlebotomy services for inpatients (P = .02). Most institutions had written policies for specimen labeling at the bedside or in outpatient phlebotomy areas (96% and 98%, respectively). Allowance of relabeling of blood specimens by primary collecting personnel was reported by 42% of institutions. Conclusions.--Laboratories actively engaged in ongoing specimen labeling quality monitors had fewer specimen labeling errors. Also, 24/7 phlebotomy services were associated with lower specimen error rates. Establishing quality metrics for specimen labeling and deploying 24/7 phlebotomy operations may contribute to improving the accuracy of specimen labeling for the clinical laboratory., In early surveys, laboratory errors were classified in several ways, including cause, phase of testing, responsible party, and impact on the patient. (1) Data from these studies and other sources [...]

* Context. -- While urine culture contamination may not be completely avoidable, some laboratories have lower contamination rates than others. A College of American Pathologists (CAP) 1998 Q-Probes study showed that many interventions commonly assumed to reduce contamination were not demonstrably effective. This article revisits the issue. Objective. -- To examine the frequency of urine culture contamination, review current laboratory practices in the collection of urine culture specimens, and determine practice characteristics that may be associated with the contamination rate. Design. -- Laboratories participating in a CAP Q-Probes study were required to prospectively collect data on 120 consecutive urine culture specimens and provide information on the patient's demographics (age and sex), the location where the specimen was collected, how the specimen was handled, the number of isolates in quantities greater than or equal to 10 000 colony-forming units (CFU)/mL, and whether the laboratory considered the specimen to be contaminated. Specific inclusion and exclusion criteria were provided to the participants. Each laboratory completed a supplemental questionnaire that probed for specific laboratory urine culture collection practices. Results. -- One hundred twenty-seven laboratories participated in the study. Results from a total of 14 739 urine specimens were received. For the purpose of this study, a urine specimen was determined to be contaminated if the culture yielded more than 2 isolates in quantities greater than or equal to 10 000 CFU/mL. Using these criteria the median institution had a contamination rate of 15.0%. Laboratories in the 10th percentile (low performance) had an average contamination rate of 41.7%, while laboratories in the 90th percentile had an average rate of 0.8%. The collection site had no influence on the contamination rate, but postcollection processing, especially refrigeration of the specimen, had a substantial effect. Providing instruction to patients produced a statistically significant lowering of contamination rates for specimens from male patients (P = .006) but not for female patients, except when written instructions were provided in the emergency room, in which case specimen contamination rates for both male and female patients dropped (P = .01). Conclusions. -- The median contamination rates remain at a level comparable to the results seen in a previous Q-Probes study, and some laboratories have very high contamination rates. Specimen refrigeration is associated with lower overall urine culture specimen contamination rate. Providing patient instruction is also associated with lower contamination rates under specific circumstances. (Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2008;132:913-917), Some contamination of urine specimens may be unavoidable. A College of American Pathologists (CAP) Q-Probes study (1) published in 1998 found that the contamination rate was as high as 36.8% [...]

* Context.--Errors entering orders for send-out laboratory tests into computer systems waste health care resources and can delay patient evaluation and management. Objectives.--To determine (1) the accuracy of send-out test order entry under "real world" conditions and (2) whether any of several practices are associated with improved order accuracy. Design.--Representatives from 97 clinical laboratories provided information about the processes they use to send tests to reference facilities and their order entry and specimen routing error rates. Results.--In aggregate, 98% of send-out tests were correctly ordered and 99.4% of send-out tests were routed to the proper reference laboratory. There was wide variation among laboratories in the rate of send-out test order entry errors. In the bottom fourth of laboratories, more than 5% of send-out tests were ordered incorrectly, while in the top fourth of laboratories fewer than 0.3% of tests were ordered incorrectly. Order entry errors were less frequent when a miscellaneous test code was used than when a specific test code was used (3.9% vs 5.6%; P = .003). Conclusions.--Computer order entry errors for send-out tests occur approximately twice as frequently as order entry errors for other types of tests. Filing more specific test codes in a referring institution's information system is unlikely to reduce order entry errors and may make error rates worse., Errors entering laboratory test orders into computer systems waste health care resources and can delay patient evaluation and management. Previous Q-Probes studies conducted by the College of American Pathologists (CAP) [...]

* Context.--Papanicolaou (Pap) tests are often diagnosed as atypical squamous cells of undetermined significance (ASC-US). Human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing has been proposed as a quality metric for this diagnosis. Objective.--To measure the frequency of HPV positivity in Pap tests diagnosed as ASC-US and to examine laboratory variables that are associated with institutional deviation from the mean percent of HPV positivity. Design.--As part of a College of American Pathologist Q-Probes program, 68 participating laboratories retrospectively identified approximately 50 consecutive ASC-US Pap tests that had HPV testing results. Results.--The mean percentage of HPV positivity for ASC-US was 43.74% among institutions surveyed, but it had a broad distribution, with an SD of 17.77%. Associations were found for lower difference of the institutional mean from the surveyed interinstitutional mean percentage of positive HPV with (1) higher numbers of Pap tests in the past year that had HPV testing, (2) in-house HPV testing, and (3) teaching hospitals. All 3 factors correlated with a larger volume of Pap tests per institution. An association was found between patient age and the probability of a positive HPV result, indicating a dependence upon prevalence of HPV. Conclusions.--Larger volumes of Pap tests may offer an opportunity to gain greater comfort in interpreting Pap tests. While there is significant variability in interinstitutional HPV-positive rates in ASC-US Pap tests, monitoring the HPV-positive rate in ASC-US Pap tests is a valuable broad measure of quality. Performance beyond 2 SDs of the mean should prompt reassessment of diagnostic criteria used in the evaluation of Pap tests and/or investigation of the prevalence of HPV positivity in the population from which the Pap tests are obtained., Human papillomavirus (HPV) has been established as the cause of cervical cancer. (1-3) In the United States, cytologic screening has reduced the incidence of cervical cancer. (4) However, as a [...]

* Objectives.--To compare how frequently institutions monitor glycohemoglobin in diabetic patients, the level of glycemic control achieved and to identify institutional factors associated with higher rates of monitoring and lower glycohemoglobin levels. Methods.--A total of 212 institutions retrospectively abstracted laboratory and outpatient records of up to 30 diabetic patients who had initial glycohemoglobin monitoring performed in their laboratories. Data from a cohort of 5586 diabetic patients and 17 365 assays were analyzed. Results.--Overall, 31.3% of patients underwent glycohemoglobin monitoring at least quarterly, the frequency recommended by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) to stabilize patients at target hemoglobin [A.sub.1c] ([HbA.sub.1c]) levels. A total of 64.9% of patients were monitored at least semiannually, the ADA recommendation for patients with stable diabetes in glycemic control (final [HbA.sub.1c] level [is less than] 7%). When we compared the top and bottom deciles of the 212 institutions, there was more than an eightfold difference in the proportion of patients monitored at least quarterly and more than a twofold difference in the proportion of patients monitored at least semiannually. Glycemic control was assessed by examining the value of the last glycohemoglobin determination on record after at least 8 months of management. For all 5586 diabetic patients, the median value of the last [HbA.sub.1c] assay was 7.4%. Comparing the top and bottom deciles, there was almost a fourfold difference among institutions in the proportion of diabetic patients in glycemic control. The use of reminders to order glycohemoglobin monitoring was associated with higher rates of semiannual monitoring (P [is less than] .05) and tighter glycemic control (P [is less than] .05). In addition, patients who were monitored more frequently experienced glycohemoglobin reductions of greater magnitude (P [is less than] .001). The presence of diabetes clinics and the use of rapid methods for testing glycohemoglobin were not associated with monitoring frequency or glycohemoglobin levels. Conclusions.--There is wide interinstitutional variation in the frequency with which diabetic patients are monitored and the level of glycemic control achieved. The use of prompting systems to remind providers to order glycohemoglobin monitoring was associated with more frequent monitoring and superior glycemic control. (Arch Pathol Lab Med. 2001;125:191-197), Measurement of hemoglobin [A.sub.1c] ([HbA.sub.1c]) or total glycohemoglobin is used to assess long-term glycemic control in patients with diabetes. The risks of hospitalization and microvascular complications of diabetes are strongly [...]

Accurate specimen identification is critical for quality patient care. Improperly identified specimens can result in delayed diagnosis, additional laboratory testing, treatment of the wrong patient for the wrong disease, and severe transfusion reactions. Specimen identification errors have been reported to occur at rates of 0.1% to 5%. To determine the frequency of labeling errors in a multi-institutional survey. Labeling errors were categorized as: (1) mislabeled, (2) unlabeled, (3) partially labeled, (4) incompletely labeled, and (5) illegible label. Blood specimens for routine or stat chemistry, hematology, and coagulation testing were included. Labeling error rates were calculated for each participant and tested for associations with institutional demographic and practice variable information. More than 3.3 million specimen labels were reviewed by 147 laboratories. Labeling errors were identified at a rate of 0.92 per 1000 labels. Two variables were statistically associated with lower labeling error rates: (1) laboratories with current, ongoing quality monitors for specimen identification (P .008) and (2) institutions with 24/7 phlebotomy services for inpatients (P .02). Most institutions had written policies for specimen labeling at the bedside or in outpatient phlebotomy areas (96% and 98%, respectively). Allowance of relabeling of blood specimens by primary collecting personnel was reported by 42% of institutions. Laboratories actively engaged in ongoing specimen labeling quality monitors had fewer specimen labeling errors. Also, 24/7 phlebotomy services were associated with lower specimen error rates. Establishing quality metrics for specimen labeling and deploying 24/7 phlebotomy operations may contribute to mproving the accuracy of specimen labeling for the clinical laboratory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: The manual microscopic examination (MME) of the urine sediment is an imprecise and labor-intensive procedure. Many laboratories have developed rules from clinical parameters or urinalysis results to limit the number of these examinations., Objective: To determine the rate of urinalysis specimens on which an MME of the urine sediment was performed, document how various rules influence this rate, and determine whether any new information was learned from the MME., Design: Participants selected 10 random urinalysis tests received during each traditional shift and determined if an MME was performed until a total of 50 urinalysis tests with an MME were reviewed. Participants recorded the rules that elicited an MME and any new information learned from such an examination., Results: The MME rate for the median institution was 62.5%. An MME of urine was most frequently done for an abnormal urinalysis result and often resulted in new information being learned, irrespective of the rule that elicited the MME. The median institution learned new information as a result of the manual examination 66% of the time. The use of an automated microscopic analyzer was associated with fewer manual examinations (P = .005), whereas the ability of a clinician to order a manual examination was associated with more manual examinations (P = .004)., Conclusions: The use of an automated microscopic analyzer may decrease the number of MMEs. An MME when triggered by an abnormal macroscopic appearance of urine, a physician request, or virtually any positive urinalysis result often resulted in new information.

Context: Hemolytic transfusion reactions are often the result of failure to follow established identification and monitoring procedures., Objective: To measure the frequencies with which health care workers completed specific transfusion procedures required for laboratory and blood bank accreditation., Design: In 2 separate studies, participants in the College of American Pathologists Q-Probes laboratory quality improvement program audited nonemergent red blood cell transfusions prospectively and completed questionnaires profiling their institutions' transfusion policies., Setting and Participants: A total of 660 institutions, predominantly in the United States, at which transfusion medicine services are provided., Main Outcomes Measures: The percentages of transfusions for which participants completed 4 specific components of patient and blood unit identifications, and for which participants monitored vital signs at 3 specific intervals during transfusions., Results: In the first study, all components of patient identification procedures were performed in 62.3%, and all required patient vital sign monitoring was performed in 81.6% of 12 448 transfusions audited. The median frequencies with which institutions participating in the first study performed all patient identification and monitoring procedures were 69.0% and 90.2%, respectively. In the second study, all components of patient identification were performed in 25.4% and all patient vital sign monitoring was performed in 88.3% of 4046 transfusions audited. The median frequencies with which institutions participating in the second study performed all patient identification and monitoring procedures were 10.0% and 95.0%, respectively. Individual practices and/or institutional policies associated with greater frequencies of patient identification and/or vital sign monitoring included transporting units of blood directly to patient bedsides, having no more than 1 individual handle blood units in route, checking unit labels against physicians' orders, having patients wear identification tags (wristbands), reading identification information aloud when 2 or more transfusionists participated, using written checklists to guide the administration of blood, instructing health care personnel in transfusion practices, and routinely auditing the administration of transfusions., Conclusions: In many hospitals, the functions of identification and vital sign monitoring of patients receiving blood transfusions do not meet laboratory and blood bank accreditation standards. Differences in hospital transfusion policies influence how well health care workers comply with standard practices. We would expect that efforts designed to perfect transfusion policies might also improve performance in those hospitals in which practice compliance is substandard.

Context: Continuous monitoring of key laboratory indicators of quality by hundreds of laboratories in a standardized measurement program affords an opportunity to document the influence of longitudinal tracking on performance improvement by participants focused on that outcome., Objective: To describe the results of the first 2 years of participation in a unique continuous performance assessment program for pathology and laboratory medicine., Design: Participants in any of 6 modules in the 1999 and 2000 College of American Pathologists (CAP) Q-Tracks program collected data according to defined methods and sampling intervals on standardized input forms. Data were submitted quarterly to CAP for statistical analysis. Interinstitutional comparison reports returned in 6 weeks provided each laboratory with its performance profile of key indicators and its percentile ranking compared with all participants in that quarter. This also included longitudinal comparisons of performance during previous cumulative quarters. Control charts graphically displayed data with flags identifying performance points that were out of statistical control., Setting: Hospital-based laboratories in the United States (98%), Canada, and Australia., Participants: Voluntary subscriber laboratories in the CAP Q-Tracks performance measurement program: roughly 70% from hospitals of 300 occupied beds or fewer, 65% from private, nonprofit institutions, slightly more than half located in cities, one third from teaching hospitals, and 20% with pathology residency training programs., Main Outcome Measures: Each module measured several major and additional minor quality indicators and unbenchmarked individualized data for internal use., Results: Participants in 4 of 6 Q-Tracks continuous monitors demonstrated statistically significant performance improvement trends in 1999 and 2000, which were most marked for laboratories that continued participation throughout both years. These monitors were wristband patient identification, laboratory specimen acceptability, blood product wastage, and intraoperative frozen section consultation., Conclusions: Key continuous indicators chosen on the basis of a decade's experience in the CAP Q-Probes quality improvement program are useful measurement and benchmarking tools for laboratories to improve performance. In general, measures in which there is a broad range of demonstrable performance initially are most optimal for subsequent improvement using continuous monitoring. These studies have shown that quality is not static, but rather is a moving benchmark of performance as seen in the redefinition of benchmarks over time by participants in the first 2 years of the CAP Q-Tracks program.

Objectives: To determine the normative distribution of time elapsed for blood bank personnel to fill nonscheduled operating room (OR) blood component orders in hospital communities throughout the United States, and to examine hospital blood bank practices associated with faster blood component delivery times., Design: Participants in the College of American Pathologists Q-Probes laboratory quality improvement program collected data prospectively on the times elapsed for blood bank personnel to fill nonscheduled emergent orders from hospital ORs for red blood cell (RBC) products, fresh frozen plasma (FFP), and platelets (PLTs). Participants also completed questionnaires describing their hospitals' and blood banks' laboratory and transfusion practices., Setting and Participants: Four hundred sixty-six public and private institutions located in 48 states in the United States (n = 444), Canada (n = 9), Australia (n = 8), the United Kingdom (n = 4), and Spain (n = 1)., Main Outcome Measures: The median time elapsed between requests for blood components by OR personnel and the retrieval of those components by blood component transport personnel, and the median time elapsed between requests for blood components by OR personnel and the arrival of those components in ORs., Results: Participants submitted data on 12 647 units of RBCs, FFP, and PLTs. The median aggregate request-to-retrieval turnaround times (TATs) for RBCs, FFP, and PLTs ranged from 30 to 35 minutes, and the median aggregate request-to-arrival TATs for RBCs, FFP, and PLTs ranged from 33 to 39 minutes. Most of the TAT was consumed by events occurring prior to, rather than after release of components from blood banks. Shorter prerelease TATs were associated with having surgical schedules that listed patients' names and procedures available to blood bank personnel prior to surgeries, and having adequate clotted specimens in the blood bank and completed type-and-screen procedures performed before requests for blood components were submitted to blood banks. Among the fastest-performing 10% of participants (90th percentile and above), request-to-retrieval TATs ranged from 12 to 24 minutes for the 3 blood components, whereas among the slowest-performing 10% of participants (10th percentile and below), request-to-retrieval TATs ranged from 63 to 115 minutes for the 3 components. Median TATs ranged from 33 to 37 minutes for the 3 components. Institutions with TATs in the fastest-performing 25th percentile more frequently stored cross-matched RBCs in the OR daily, stocked PLTs for unexpected surgical use, stored PLTs in or near the OR, and had laboratory rather than nonlaboratory personnel deliver components to the OR than did those institutions with TATs in the slowest-performing 25th percentile., Conclusions: Hospital blood bank personnel can deliver blood components to the OR in slightly longer than 30 minutes, measured from the time that those units are requested by OR personnel. Practices aimed at saving time before components are released from blood banks will be more efficient in reducing overall TAT than those practices aimed at saving time after components are released from blood banks. Specific practices associated with shorter blood delivery TATs included providing blood bank personnel with access to the names of surgical patients potentially requiring blood components, having pretransfusion testing completed on those patients prior to surgery, having ample blood products on hand, and having laboratory personnel control blood product delivery.

Objectives: To determine the normative rates of blood unit crossmatched to transfused (C:T) ratios, red blood cell (RBC) unit wastage, and RBC unit expiration that exist in hospital communities throughout the United States, and to examine hospital blood bank practices associated with more desirable (lower) rates., Design: In 3 separate studies, participants in the College of American Pathologists Q-Probes laboratory quality improvement program collected data retrospectively on the number of transfusion crossmatches performed in their institutions and the number of RBC-containing units that were transfused into patients, the number of units that expired (outdated) prior to being utilized, and the number that were wasted due to mishandling. Participants also completed questionnaires describing their hospitals' and blood banks' laboratory and transfusion practices., Setting and Participants: One thousand six hundred thirty-nine public and private institutions, well more than 80% of which were known to be located in the United States., Main Outcome Measures: Quality indicators of blood utilization (namely, the C:T ratio, the rate of RBC unit expiration, and the rate of RBC unit wastage)., Results: Participants submitted data on 12,288,404 RBC unit transfusions. The C:T ratios were 1.5 or less in the top-performing 10% of participating institutions (90th percentile and above), 1.8 to 1.9 in the midrange of participating institutions (50th percentile), and 2.4 or greater in the bottom-performing 10% of participating institutions (10th percentile and below). Red blood cell unit expiration rates were 0.1% or less at the 90th percentile and above, 0.3% to 0.9% at the 50th percentile, and 3.5% or greater at the 10th percentile and below. Red blood cell unit wastage rates were 0.1% or less at the 90th percentile and above, 0.1% to 0.4% at the 50th percentile, and 0.7% or greater at the 10th percentile and below. Depending on which quality indicator was examined, lower values (ie, better performances) were found in institutions that had fewer than 200 hospital beds, no teaching programs, no on-site full-time medical directors of transfusion services, did not utilize maximum surgical blood order schedules, set C:T threshold goals of 2.0 or less, monitored categories of health care workers responsible for RBC wastage, monitored requests for RBC components by transfusion indication, did not accept short-dated units from blood distribution centers, and if they did accept short-dated units, were allowed to return those units to the distribution centers., Conclusions: Hospital blood bank personnel can achieve C:T ratios below 2.0, RBC unit expiration rates below 1.0%, and RBC unit wastage rates below 0.5%. Lower C:T ratios and/or RBC unit expiration rates were associated with blood bank personnel setting C:T thresholds of 2.0 or less, monitoring requests for blood components by transfusion indication criteria, monitoring categories of health care workers responsible for blood wastage, not accepting short-dated units from blood distribution centers, and if short-dated units were accepted, being allowed to return those units to the blood distribution center. These practices were not associated with lower blood wastage rates.