Blood services, haematoloty & transfusion service receive full UKAS accrediation

UKAS is the national accreditation body for the United Kingdom and is recognised by government, to assess organisations that provide certification, testing, inspection and calibration services, against internationally agreed standards.

Janet Lippett, Care Group Director Networked Care said: “We welcome any assessment of our services and view them as an opportunity to showcase the great work we do and use feedback to help us improve further. The assessors visited three of our teams, Haematology, Phlebotomy and Biochemistry.”

A team of assessors spent a period of approximately 10 man days carrying out a thorough inspection against the international standard ISO15189 – Medical Laboratories; checking that the service met requirements for quality and competence; and that the team had the training, skills, expertise, processes, procedures and management systems in place to ensure it meets all requirements and continually works to improve. As pathology services are integral to patient pathways it is essential that these departments are held to this high standard.

Shirley McKenzie, Principal Biomedical Scientist for Haematology said: “To maintain these standards requires significant commitment from all staff members and to achieve this is a great reflection of the skills, expertise and commitment of the staff, especially in light of the significant changes that the departments have undergone in the last year and are still undergoing. It was appreciated when the assessors made note of the professionalism and competence of all the staff they met, with special commendation to the support staff in Haematology, as well as complimenting the format and depth of audits undertaken in Biochemistry.”