Eqa strategic objectives

Session 7: EQA strategic objectives to underpin quality of laboratory-based surveillance and preparedness at EU/EEA level

15th National Microbiology Focal Points meeting

Barbara Albiger, Expert Microbiology, Office of the Chief Scientist

European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control

15th NMFP, Stockholm, 13-14 October 2016

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ECDC Strategy for laboratory EQAs

• In the recent years, public health microbiology andsurveillance have witnessed the rapid development ofmolecular typing methods and the increasing use of wholegenome sequencing (WGS). These bring new challengesand opportunities to the execution of ECDC EQA schemes.

• Due to foreseen restrictions of the EU budget for health, theEQA schemes are in strong competition for limitedresources.

Strategy for cost-efficient management of ECDC EQAs

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Vision

‘By 2020, ECDC-supported External Quality Assessments willhelp document and improve the quality and comparability ofkey laboratory surveillance data reported at the European leveland foster capabilities to detect emerging and epidemicdiseases or drug resistance threats across EU Member States’

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Four priority areas

Priority area 1: Consolidate the EQA schemes quality and efficiency

Priority area 2: Enhance the availability and the impact of the EQA data

Priority area 3: Focus EQA scope to strengthen laboratory capacity

Priority area 4: Monitor usefulness to participants

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Priority areas, strategic objectives and indicators

Priority area 1: Consolidate the EQA scheme quality and efficiency

Strategic objective 1.2: Promote inclusive laboratory participation by all EU/EEA countries

Indicator:

– Percentage of EU/EEA Member States with laboratories capable to participate in ECDC EQAs.

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Priority areas, strategic objectives and indicators cont’

Priority area 2: Enhance the availability and the impact of the EQA data

Strategy objective 2.3: Link the EQA data and results to the interpretation of EU surveillance data

Indicator:

– Percentage of surveillance reports/surveillance Atlas outputs referring to latest EQA results/report relevant to indicate any routine technical limitations of laboratory-derived data.

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Strategy objective 3.1: Prioritise the EQA scope based on the public health needs

Indicator:

– Percentage of disease specific EQA schemes planned that meet one or more of the priority criteria, by annual work plan.

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Priority criteria:

• Sustain a unique role in supporting reference laboratory accreditation at the national level;

• Support proficiency with identification/ characterisation tests that are limited to specialised public health laboratories;

• Provide a service that is not commercially available;

• Support capability for the detection and investigation of rare/imported or emerging diseases and drug resistance threats;

• Support the transfer of new technologies (i.e., molecular and genomic-based typing) for EU level surveillance and outbreak investigations.

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Strategy objective 3.2: Link the identified needs to the country support and training activities at generic and disease specific levels

Indicator:

– Percentage of disease specific laboratory training courses that are designed to address EQA identified issues;

– Percentage of generic laboratory support and training activities that are designed to address EQA identified issues.

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Priority area 4: Monitor usefulness to participants

Strategy objective 4.1: Monitor corrective measures and accreditation input

Indicator:

– Percentage of participating laboratories that identified a new technical issue through individual EQA results that led to taking corrective measures, per EQA round;

– Percentage of participating laboratories that included their individual ECDC EQA report into their laboratory accreditation dossier, per EQA round.

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Thank you for listening - Let’s start the discussion!– You have received the four questions for this session

– We will start with getting your collective feedback using an opinion poll

– Please pick the electronic device you have received

– This device will allow you to choose one of the options proposed to you

– To select one option, press on the corresponding number or letter of your choice. You can change your mind until the poll is closed. The poll will take into account only the last vote.

– The result is anonymous

– Remember there is no right or wrong answer – this collects your feedback for discussion

– We now will test with an icebreaker question

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Clark Kent aka Superman!

Bruce Wayne aka ?

A. Hulk

B. Spiderman

C. Wolverine

D.Batman

Hulk

Spiderman

Wolverine

Batman

0% 0%0%0%

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Question 1: Should the individual laboratory proficiency level based on EQA results be anonymous to ECDC?

1. Agree

2. Disagree

Agree

Disagree

00

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Question 2: Should the individual laboratory proficiency level based on EQA results be taken into account in interpreting the quality of data reported to TESSy by country?

1. Agree

2. Disagree

Agree

Disagree

00

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Question 3: Should Member State participation to any EQA exercise and the rationale for non-participation be disclosed in the EQA reports?

1. Agree

2. Disagree

Agree

Disagree

00

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Question 4: Which are the three most important criteria ECDC should consider when prioritising EQAs?

1. Commercial availability

2. Accreditation requirement and quality assurance

3. Cost for Member States

4. Support to new technologies/methods/interpretation standards

5. Support to identification capability for emerging or rare diseases/ drug resistance

6. Support to molecular typing for reporting to EU surveillance

7. Support to EU technical harmonisation

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

0 0 0 0000

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Thank you for your feedback,

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All ECDC presentations will be available on SlideShare: http://www.slideshare.net/tag/15NMFP2016

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And visit our website

http://ecdc.europa.eu/en/healthtopics/microbiology/Pages/microbiology.aspx

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Eqa strategic objectives