p50 is a shorthand representation of hemoglobin-oxygen affinity. A lower p50 is protective in ambient hypoxemia, whereas increasing the p50 should be beneficial in hypoxia due to lung disease, anemia, and tissue ischemia. Despite encouraging theoretical and experimental data, it is not yet established that...

Attention to how data are handled by different groups in a hospital is important when interfacing a point-of-care testing system. Consideration of existing data handling practices and future data evaluation needs - before, during, and after installation - and careful planning in cooperation with each hospital...

If you think only private corporations can call themselves project organizations, think again. Hospitals around the world are increasingly seeing themselves as project organizations and relying on project groups to explore and implement new technologies.  Meanwhile, healthcare workers participating in these projects...

When performing method comparisons, it is important to address a number of preparatory and preanalytical issues to ensure that comparisons solely reflect the analytical differences between the two methods in question. This article provides preparatory and preanalytical checklists that can be used when comparing two...

In our laboratory, we have used a combination of assay capability and the Westgard multirules as the basis of our quality control procedures. We have also used the concept of six sigma as the criterion for performance acceptability, which has allowed the identification of problem analytes and instituted improvements...

Transcutaneous non-invasive monitoring technology has been around for more than thirty years.  Throughout this period of time, transcutaneous monitoring has been closely linked to the care of neonates. However, recent studies suggest that transcutaneous technology may work just as well in older children and adults....

In a 1999 study, the US Institute of Medicine (IOM) concluded that 44,000 to 98,000 hospitalized Americans die each year from preventable medical errors. While the number of serious medical errors attributable to point of care (point-of-care testing, POCT) is not known, the testing environment (patient bedside) and...

"Six Sigma" is the latest trend in quality management and is being widely implemented in business and industry today. Six Sigma represents an evolution of Total Quality Management (TQM), providing a more quantitative framework for evaluating process performance and clearer goals for process improvement. The...

In the U.S. all testing, including decentralized testing, is regulated according to the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA'88). Congress passed CLIA'88 to ensure accurate, reliable, and timely test results regardless of test site. These quality control, quality assurance, and proficiency tesing...

The measurement of the electrolytes in blood is one of the most frequently performed measurements as the electrolytes are of major physiological importance for numerous functions of the body. Analysis of electrolytes such as sodium and potassium are performed in the traditional clinical chemistry laboratory, but are...