Mumbai :  With the aimto provide quality diagnosis and better treatment outcomes for patients, the College of American Pathologists (CAP), the world leader in laboratory quality assurance and improvement and BD Diagnostics, a segment of BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company), a leading global medical technology company,today announced the launch of a new strategic alliancethat would help more pathology labs in the country to offer high quality services at par with the rest of the world.

Laboratories play a critical role in the diagnosis and treatment of disease for the more than a billion people who live in India. The BD/CAP Strategic Alliance will improve access to external quality assurance/proficiency testing (PT) that can have a direct and positive impact on laboratory quality, and therefore, patient outcomes. Together BD and CAP will provide education to improve awareness of global practice standards and training that will help laboratories achieve their quality improvement goals.

“As countries around the world heighten their focus on healthcare, patients and healthcare professionals wish to achievehigher quality across the entire spectrum of care. The clinical laboratory and pathology contribute more than 70 percent of the information used to determine diagnoses and drive treatment decisions,” said CAP President Stanley J. Robboy, MD, FCAP. “CAP has all of the tools necessary to help laboratories improve and monitor efforts that drive quality performance. This strategic alliance with BD will increase access to these essential resources, helping laboratories accelerate their quality improvement journey so that they can contribute to better quality care, differentiate themselves and their institutions, and be recognized globally among the best providers of laboratory and pathology services.”

At present CAP’s Laboratory Accreditation, Surveys, PT programs, and other quality management resources combined with BD’s in-depth clinical knowledge of preanalytical systems provide a comprehensive, expert-based toolkit to help laboratories in India continuously improve the quality of the testing services they provide to patients. Through participation in CAP accreditation, laboratories in India can demonstrate their compliance to the most robust and comprehensive clinical laboratory testing standards in the world.

“This historic initiative brings together two of the leading global organizations that are ideally positioned to support laboratory improvement efforts around the world, particularly in India,” said John Ledek, President, BD Diagnostics – Preanalytical Systems. “BD offers extensive reach across the continuum of healthcare and laboratory testing operations, with a deep understanding of quality processes from both a technical and clinical perspective. CAP is the recognized leader in establishing pathology and laboratory standards and practices and developing tools to guide and monitor lab progress on improving quality. From preanalytical specimen collection through post-analytical result reporting and interpretation, together, CAP and BD can provide more integrated laboratory quality improvement solutions that begin and end with the patient.”

Having operated in India since 1996 supporting public and private sector partners in enhancing laboratory standards, BD has extensive experience in deploying clinical expertise and educational resources, as well as a deep understanding of the unique needs of laboratories in the country. In India, of the 71 laboratories participating in CAP PT, 42 have achieved CAP-accreditation. BD’s access and logistics experience will support CAP PT importation and ensure more timely delivery and quality, reduce participants’ administrative work, and allow billing in local currency. Market launch of this initiative will begin in India in August 2013 with PT distribution initiated in January 2014.

Source : Lokesh Shastri