On 30 Nov 2001, at 15:15, Firth, Gary wrote:
> Finally, before I step off the
> soapbox, if you look at the UKNEQAS website for interpretative
> comments, its purpose is stated to be '...for the assessment of
> interpretative comments added to patients results by individuals.' Do
> we need this NEQAS service or not? Gary firth
The UK NEQAS for Interpretative Comments exists for a number of
reasons:
[1] people really enjoyed and valued the Mailbase list and wanted
this to continue in some more easily managed format
[2] people say it is needed because the consistency of the
comments that are made is extremely poor
[3] whether or not it is 'right' to add comments to reports, people
actually do this as part of their day job, so, like the analytical side
of the work, it must be 'quality assured'. EQA primarily assesses
actual practice and provides objective information for the profession
as a whole to judge whether the practice is appropriate
[4] it is used actively by many departments as part of training and
professional development
To my mind, the ability to add value to a set of results (in the
context of a stated clinical scenario), by means of a succint,
relevant interpretation or suggestion for further investigation
(possibly already done), is a core competency which defines the
nature of our profession.
If we comment, we should comment with care and professionalism
and subject that process to quality assessment, audit and peer
review.
Jonathan Middle
============================================
Jonathan Middle, UK NEQAS Birmingham
tel 0121 414 7300 fax 0121 414 1179
This message is intended only for the above
recipient(s). The opinions expressed are
mine alone and do not necessarily represent
those of UK NEQAS Birmingham, the University
Hospital Birmingham NHS Trust or the UK NEQAS
Organisation.
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