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Articles and journal scans about Quality assurance
Journal Scan
July 2011
Falsely low SpO2 - an educative case study present
Blood gas analysis (BGA) provides the means for the most accurate assessment of patient oxygenation status; the two relevant blood gas parameters being partial pressure of oxygen in arterial blood (pO2(a)), and % hemoglobin oxygen saturation (sO2(a)).
Pulse oximetry, a technology now ubiquitous in all areas of...
Blood gases/acid-base
Quality assurance
Hemoglobins
Journal Scan
April 2011
Improving patient safety by reducing sample identification errors
The 1999 US Institute of Medicine report "To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health Care System" provided an influential wake-up call for healthcare workers concerning the frequency of preventable medical errors. Initiatives over the past decade aimed at improving the safety of patient-sample testing represent just...
Quality assurance
Preanalytical phase
Article
April 2011
Optimizing accuracy and precision for point-of-care tests
Point-of-care testing sites continue to increase in number due to the availability of easy-to-use devices that make it possible to provide test results very quickly relative to the central laboratory services. There is, however, mixed review regarding the accuracy and reliability of POCT results for patient care. It...
Point-of-care testing
Preanalytical phase
Quality assurance
Glucose
Hemoglobins
Lactate
Troponins
Journal Scan
October 2010
Challenging intensive care policy
In the intensive care unit blood is frequently sampled for arterial blood gases via an indwelling arterial catheter. Around a third of critically ill patients have such catheters inserted; they allow not only easy access for blood sampling but also continuous monitoring of blood pressure. In a short editorial the...
Quality assurance
Preanalytical phase
Journal Scan
October 2010
Blood gas interpretation in ER: room for improvement
If the results of a recent New Zealand study are representative, there is room for improvement in the quality of blood gas test result interpretation among emergency-room medical staff. A total of 80 emergency-room doctors (37 consultants and 43 emergency-medicine trainees) voluntarily submitted themselves for a...
Blood gases/acid-base
Quality assurance
Journal Scan
July 2010
Pseudo-hypoxemia
Arterial blood gas analysis includes measurement of partial pressure of oxygen (pO2(a)) and calculation of oxygen saturation (sO2(a)), both useful for assessing patient oxygenation status. Hypoxemia is diagnosed if pO2(a) is below the lower limit of the reference range (10.6 kPa, 88 mmHg). Pseudo-hypoxemia is...
Blood gases/acid-base
Quality assurance
Preanalytical phase
Article
January 2010
Verification of methods and instruments
Analytical methods are often developed at one site and
transferred to other sites for routine use. Increasingly, the
method development is made by manufacturers of instruments and
reagents. Regulatory agencies have ruled that the
responsibility for the performance of IVDs in the laboratories
mainly should lie with...
Quality assurance
Creatinine/urea
Article
June 2009
Acute care testing at the point-of-care: now and in the future
The field of point-of-care testing (POCT) is entering a period of rapid expansion. This expansion is being driven by new evidence for clinical effectiveness of POCT, and new technologies that allow consolidation of testing onto smaller platforms.
Technological improvements will also lead to increased accuracy for...
Glucose
Blood gases/acid-base
Point-of-care testing
Quality assurance
Lactate
Creatinine/urea
Hemoglobins
Kidneys/fluids
Article
April 2009
Reference intervals (2) - some practical considerations
This is the second of two articles focusing on the reference interval, the most widely used tool for interpretation of patient test results.
The first [1] was an introduction to the theoretical concepts that underpin the significance, construction and use of reference intervals. Here consideration is given to the...
Quality assurance
Information management
Point-of-care testing
Hemoglobins
Journal Scan
July 2008
Accuracy of pulse oximetry affected by arterial pCO2
Arterial oxygen saturation sO2(a) is a parameter calculated during blood gas analysis that is useful for monitoring respiratory function. Pulse oximetry provides a safer and more convenient, non-invasive means of measuring oxygen saturation that is used in many clinical settings.
The value of pulse oximetry depends...
Blood gases/acid-base
Quality assurance