Nothing is more important to the College of American Pathologists (CAP) than building and maintaining strong connections with each and every one of its more than 8,000 accredited laboratories. Brazil’s Fleury laboratory is no exception.
Together, the two organizations recently hosted a laboratory preparation program providing educational opportunities and supporting the CAP’s mission to foster excellence in the practice of pathology and laboratory medicine.
Approximately 200 pathologists, quality managers, laboratory supervisors, and laboratory professionals from across the region gathered in Sao Paulo, Brazil, for a daylong intensive program helping guide medical laboratory professionals through the CAP accreditation requirements while teaching practical tips to assess competency and ensure quality and safety for patients. The event was held specifically for laboratories preparing for or currently undergoing the accreditation process.
Edgar Gil Rizzati, MD, medical and technical executive director at Fleury in Sao Paulo, considered the event an excellent opportunity for laboratory professionals from the area to keep up to date on the latest in quality improvement and patient safety.
“Physicians, scientists, technical consultants, and laboratory technicians discussed specific questions about the 2019 CAP checklists to guarantee compliance in the next internal and external inspections,” he said.
Dr. Rizzati and his team consider CAP accreditation to be a certification of quality that helps ensure testing accuracy and patient safety in their laboratories. Fleury’s main technical laboratory in Sao Paulo has been accredited by the CAP since 2007 and its affiliate clinical laboratory at Sirio Libanes Hospital received CAP accreditation in 2019.
He continued, “For our patients, being CAP-accredited means that distinguished specialists from the best accreditation program in the world have verified and confirmed that the diagnostic tests we provide follow internationally recognized best practices and quality standards.”
Bharati Jhaveri, MD, FCAP, and the former chair of the CAP Council on Accreditation, led several of the day’s sessions. She said that hands-on learning and working side-by-side with peers in different laboratory settings is one of the most important aspects of the program that attendees can take back to share with their laboratories.
“CAP accreditation is sought internationally, and as new laboratories decide and prepare to get accredited, a prep seminar is helpful in answering many questions that the laboratory may be trying to understand—they can have direct dialogue with CAP members about their goals,” said Dr. Jhaveri.
Leonas Bekeris, MD, FCAP, spoke on anatomic pathology and cytopathology at the event and reviewed frequently cited deficiencies and what laboratories can do to avoid any quality missteps.
“No matter where you are, all laboratory personnel are deeply interested in running an efficient laboratory while maintaining a very high level of quality and service,” said Dr. Bekeris. “Patient welfare is always the main focus point of all good laboratories.”
Learn more about international CAP accreditation and quality assurance.