WHO manual for organizing a national external quality assessment programme for health laboratories and other testing sites

Overview

Results of clinical testing obtained from laboratories or testing sites at or near the point of care must be as accurate as possible as they have a direct impact on care and treatment, prevention, and control of diseases. Testing consists of pre-examination, examination, and postexamination processes, which require strict implementation of a quality management system. The components of this quality system include internal quality (process) control, proficiency testing (PT), and quality improvement. It is only when these components are implemented together that quality improvement or the highest attainable quality of testing can be achieved and consequently can improve health outcomes in terms of disease prevention and control, care and treatment.