Abstract
Background
“Guidelines for safe and effective management and use of point of care testing” have been recently launched in Ireland.
Aims
To survey point of care testing (POCT) services in the Republic of Ireland.
Methods
A questionnaire covering accreditation status, existence of POCT committees, quality management systems, and staff resources was distributed by the Irish External Quality Assessment Scheme (IEQAS).
Results
Of those that returned completed questionnaires, 56% had assigned specific POCT responsibilities to designated staff. Most support was for blood gases and glucose analysis. Compared with other published studies, Irish laboratories gave similar support for blood gases, less for glucose and much less for urinalysis.
Conclusions
This survey demonstrated poor IT support for POCT. The majority of the respondents (78%) were dissatisfied with the quality of the POCT service in their institution.
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References
Point of Care Testing Consultative Group (2007) Guidelines for safe and effective management and use of Point of care testing. ISBN 978 1 905487 17 2 (approved by AMLS, ACBI, IMB, RCPI)
ISO 15189 (2003) Medical laboratories—particular requirements for quality and competence
ISO 22870 (2006) Point-of-care testing (POCT)—requirements of quality and competence
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Acknowledgments
We wish to thank Annette Thomas for permission to use her survey as a template for our own, the membership of the POCT Consultative Group (G. Boran, S. Cunningham, N. McCarroll, H. Grimes O’Cearbhaill, J. Collier, A. O’Connor, J. Guerin, T. Hurley), and IEQAS (H. Graham).
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R. A. O’Kelly belongs to the Point of Care Testing Consultative Group and Sub-committee. G. Boran belongs to the Point of Care Testing Consultative Group and to the Irish External Quality Assessment Scheme.
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O’Kelly, R.A., Brady, J.J., Byrne, E. et al. A survey of point of care testing in Irish hospitals: room for improvement. Ir J Med Sci 180, 237–240 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-010-0535-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11845-010-0535-x