Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) has again been recognized on the international stage with the reaccreditation of its extensive laboratory network by the College of American Pathologists (CAP). The international body provides the world’s most recognized laboratory accreditation program, which is considered the global gold standard for laboratory management.
While HMC’s Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology (DLMP) first received the prestigious accreditation in 2014, the re-accreditation marks the first time the Point of Care Testing Services (POCTS) across HMC were inspected. Dr. Ajayeb Al Nabet, Chairperson of the DLMP, commended her team and colleagues on the successful collaboration that resulted in the reaccreditation.
“The CAP laboratory accreditation program checklists contain over 3,000 standards that are used during laboratory accreditation inspections to help laboratories stay in compliance with internationally set standards. The fact that our DLMP facilities have achieved CAP accreditation for the third consecutive time since 2014 demonstrates our team’s strong commitment to providing the highest quality of services for patients across Qatar. I’m immensely proud of the team, their diligent efforts and professional approach which have made this considerable feat possible,” said Dr. Al Nabet.
The DLMP is located in nine facilities across Qatar and provides services to HMC’s network of twelve hospitals. The DLMP not only serves the patients of HMC but also provides referral services to over 135 customers across Qatar. This includes the military, police, embassies, international schools, banks, private hospitals, and national and multinational companies. The DLMP performs over 17 million tests per year, including tests for the Blood Bank Service, and provides a comprehensive range of specialized laboratory services for the people of Qatar. The Blood Bank Service is the sole source of blood and blood products for the country and Qatar depends on the service for a safe and adequate supply of blood and blood products.
This year has been particularly notable for the DLMP as the Department has also achieved recognition as a National Influenza Center by the World Health Organization (WHO). This reflects the mandate given by the Ministry of Public Health to the DLMP to collect virus specimens for Qatar and to perform preliminary analysis that is then shared with the WHO’s Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS). The GISRS monitors the evolution of influenza viruses and provides recommendations in areas including laboratory diagnostics, vaccines, antiviral susceptibility, and risk assessment. It is the global alert mechanism for the emergence of influenza viruses with pandemic potential.
Dr. Abdulla Al Ansari, Acting Chief Medical Officer at HMC said international accreditation is part of HMC’s vision to drive transformational change across the organization.
“Accreditation is an important metric of a laboratory's quality standard and by pursuing accreditation with the CAP, HMC has benchmarked their laboratory and pathology services alongside leading laboratory and medical facilities worldwide, solidifying their position as a leader in the region,” said Dr. Al Ansari.
The CAP accreditation is founded on the most exacting standards in clinical diagnostic laboratories and is designed to provide:
- Assurance to the public and patients that the laboratory services are safe and that the public can have full confidence in the results and interpretative advice provided.
- Assurance to the customers of the DLMP, including physicians, that the service delivery is of the highest quality as measured against international standards including accuracy, reproducibility, and timeliness of results.
- Assurance to global bodies, such as the WHO, that HMC is able to deliver highly reliable and reproducible data for Qatar that can be included in global studies.
