Lab Matters Summer 2018 | Page 87

APHL 2018 Annual Meeting Poster Abstracts agencies . To ensure quality testing , accuracy and report accountability , it is imperative that specimens be submitted using suitable and accurate identifiers and that appropriate shipping and handling of the specimen to testing laboratories occurs . Labeling errors and specimens shipped under suboptimal conditions lead to cancellation of specimens . This impacts patient care as treatment is postponed due to delay in results , lost analyst productivity and higher testing fees due to repeat collection .

Method : To investigate specimen rejections at Indiana State Department of Health Laboratories ( ISDHL ) resulting from improper labeling and / or shipping conditions , data was gathered from ISDHL Information Management System , STARLIMS . Data was collected on submitters , reasons for cancellation , test requests and specimen submission dates . This information was then examined to categorize the most common reason for specimen cancellations and identify submitting facilities . An instructional specimen submission training presentation was created and dispersed via an electronic mailing list .

Results : Data showed that specimen cancellations were most frequently due to incorrect patient identification issues or labeling . The training presentation was based on this data to highlight areas where errors were being made and then to present information on how to correctly submit specimens . Previously , the average cancellation was 5.17 %. Following dissemination of this training tool , initial data indicated a decrease in the number of canceled specimens for the first month following the release of the presentation ; however , the subsequent two months revealed a steady increase in cancellations . Specimen cancellation was at 3.14 % in the month immediately following the training but then rose to 4.59 % and 5.70 % during the next two months .

Discussion : The initial decrease in specimen cancellation following the training tool dissemination does not appear to be long-lasting . This may be attributed to the fact that submitters have not fully incorporated the presentation into their specimen submission process , complete training using this tool has not been widespread , or staffing turnover . By continuing to track this data on a monthly basis , ISDH will be able to observe whether this increase is a trend and possibly identify ways to mitigate it . With an average of 19,000 HIV specimens submitted yearly , it is important to continue communication and education with submitters to decrease cancellations .

Presenter : Stephanie Dalenberg , Indiana State Department of Health , Indianapolis , IN , Phone : 317.921.5535 , Email : sdalenberg @ isdh . in . gov

Walking in Each Other ’ s Shoes : The Importance of Building Relationships Between Epi and Lab

( complete abstract in Food Safety , p . 57 )

Advantages of Self-Directed Regional Public Health Laboratory Networks

S . Zanto 1 , E . King 2 , R . Limberger 3 , S . Smole 4 , S . Buss 5 , D . Gibson 6 , M . Stevenson 7 , S . Massingale 8 , R . Steece 9 , S . Zimmerman 10 , K . Buchs 11 , D . Toney 12 , J . Ridderhof 13 , R . Ned-Sykes 13 , B . Su 14 ; C . Bean 15 , M . Ishida 16 , M . Celotti 17 , C . Massen 18 , T . Southern 19 , J . Rakeman 20 ; 1 Laboratory SolutionZ LLC , Helena , MT , 2 Rhode Island Department of Health , Providence , RI , 3 New York State Department of Health Wadsworth Center , Albany , NY , 4 William A .

Hinton State Laboratory Institute , Jamaica Plain , MA , 5 Wyoming Public Health Laboratory , Cheyenne , WY , 6 Montana Laboratory Services Bureau , Helena , MT , 7 Idaho Bureau of Laboratories , Boise , ID , 8 Alabama Bureau of Clinical Laboratories , Montgomery , AL ,

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Tennessee Department of Health : Laboratory Services , Nashville , TN , 10 North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health , Raleigh , NC ,

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Philadelphia Public Health Laboratories , Philadelphia , PA , 12 Virginia Division of Consolidated Laboratories , Richmond , VA , 13 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , Atlanta , GA , 14 Association of Public Health Laboratories , Silver Spring , MD , 15 New Hampshire Department of Health , Concord , NH , 16 New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets , Albany , NY , 17 Vermont Department of Health Laboratory , Colchester , VT , 18 North Dakota Public Health Laboratory , Bismarck , ND , 19 South Dakota Public Health Laboratory , Pierre , SD , 20 New York City Public Health Laboratory , New York , NY

Implementing rapidly expanding technologies and maintaining a well-trained competent workforce while ensuring quality and safety present continuous challenges for public health laboratories in an era of tight budgets . One of the innovative strategies that PHL directors and senior leadership have developed is the establishment of regional PHL networks that are driven by state and local laboratories and are not mandated by funding sources . There are many advantages to participation in these regional networks including building relationships and collaborations , increasing workforce development and sharing services , resources and best practices . Already there are success stories from existing state- and local-directed PHL networks . The Northeast Environmental and Public Health Laboratory Directors ( NEEPHLD ) consortium identified a need for rabies laboratory assessments in their participating states and undertook a project under which inter-laboratory audits were conducted to ensure quality rabies testing . The Northern Plains Consortium ( NPC ) conducted two regional emerging leader programs in the past three years . This program , designed after the APHL Emerging Leaders Program , strove to increase the leadership skills of promising public health professionals . Both consortiums also support regular conferencing of their PHL biosafety officers to share best practices and approaches for clinical laboratory safety outreach . The Southeast Consortium ( ColLABorators ) ( SEC ) have identified numerous opportunities for sharing documents and best practices . The newly formed Mid-Atlantic Consortium ( MAC ) has started to develop policies and procedures for sharing best practices , test services and samples and isolates for validation studies . Also , with the acquisition of whole genome sequencing capabilities and other emerging technologies , workforce development has benefited from PHL networks through regional trainings that include webinars and hands-on workshops . Finally , through regular conference calls or in-person meetings , regional PHL networks benefit from building professional relationships among their peers and establishing lasting friendships . Through the formation of state and local-directed regional public health laboratory networks , with or without formal Memorandums of Understanding ( MOU ), member laboratories can continue to provide needed services while enhancing workforce development and quality assessment . Using these self-directed networks , PHLs are able to leverage resources to better address PHL challenges as a result of technology and priority changes , while maintaining and even increasing , laboratory capabilities and capacities .

Presenter : Susanne Zanto , MPH , MLS , SM , Laboratory SolutionZ LLC , Helena , MT , Phone : 406.459.1076 , Email : laboratorysolutionz @ gmail . com

Quality Systems