[Histonet] Re: H&E quality check. .

[Henry, Charlene]

Michael,
Actually it is now a CAP requirement.

ANP.11713 Is there documented evidence of daily review of the technical quality of histologic preparations by the pathologist.

This is the way we address this question.
Each morning while we are cutting surgical and bone marrow biopsies, we randomly select 2-3 blocks and cut a QC H&E slide in addition to the routine cuts. They are stained along the routine cases and these are given to our Director of AP for review. She then documents the quality of fixation, processing, cutting and staining on a log. While she is on vacation one of our other pathologists review the slides. When the log sheet is full, it is returned to me and filed with our QC records.


Charlene Henry HT (ASCP), QIHC
Anatomic Pathology Section Head
Department of Pathology
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
901-495-3191
fax 901-495-3100

-----Original Message-----
From: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu [mailto:histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of Michael Mihalik
Sent: Monday, July 07, 2008 2:51 PM
To: 'Robert Richmond'; histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Subject: RE: [Histonet] Re: H&E quality check. .

To tag along with this statement.  Wouldn't it be nice if the pathologist could comment on the 'quality' of the stain as they are reviewing the slide in the first place?

...or am I missing something here?

Michael Mihalik
PathView Systems | office: 207.483.0968 | cell: 214.733.7688 | 800.798.3540
| fax: 270.423.0968




-----Original Message-----
From: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
[mailto:histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of Robert Richmond
Sent: Monday, July 07, 2008 3:34 PM
To: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
Subject: [Histonet] Re: H&E quality check

Well, I've worked in roughly 60 hospital and private lab pathology services in my locum tenens career, and I've never seen a functioning QA (or whatever they call it this year) program for H & E (or any other stain) in a pathology lab. An occasional lab has the pathologist fill out QA sheets telling them that the slides are wonderful - invariably in such labs the slides are horrible. In most labs nobody but the pathologist ever looks at a slide under a microscope.

A meaningful QA program would have a pathologist and a senior histotechnologist review some of the day's production, during the working day. I've always been ridiculed for suggesting it.

Bob Richmond
Samurai Pathologist
Knoxville TN

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