www.qci-oneworldlab.in
In 2006, the Quality Council of India (QCI), after an extensive international search, selected OneWorld-Lab as its implementation partner QCI’s National Programme for Essential Standards in Medical Testing Laboratories. The Essential Standards were requested by the Government of India Ministry of Health, and inspired by global best practices. OneWorld-Lab, working collaboratively with QCI (www.qcin.org), created an India-specific Programme around the
Standard and is responsible for all aspects of the national implementation.
India has approximately 100,000 medical laboratories that provide patients and clinicians with the critical test results needed to guide healthcare decisions – in fact, up to 70% of medical diagnoses are based on this data, making lab test result accuracy vital to patient health. QCI recognized that even though most of India’s laboratories are capable and strive for continual improvement in their operations, they are often not ready to go in for accreditation to an international standard. They also knew that these same labs actively want to improve, desire access to best practices, and want recognition for their efforts.
This multi-year quality improvement and certification programme is intended for all public and private laboratories in India, and is similar to the programme described in Country Solutions. The Essential Standard incorporates OneWorld-Lab’s step-wise improvement process and creates the foundation for compliance with ISO 15189 standards (www.iso.org) - the global standard for quality and competence in medical laboratories.
The QCI Essential Standard Programme was created to produce more accurate test results, ensure confidence, and improve patient and laboratory safety. Created using a multi-stakeholder approach it balances the needs of rural and urban settings, and was designed to help all labs regardless of size, sophistication and location. In February 2008 the Programme launched with more than 700 laboratories enrolled. For more detailed information about the Programme, please visit www.qci-oneworldlab.in – the official programme website, or click on the image below: