[Histonet] Policy on Floaters

[Morken, Tim]

I assure you "floaters" are not trivial in a diagnostic setting. Imagine a case biopsied for suspected melanoma. The tissue appears clear of melanoma but on the edge there is a small piece that is suspicious. But other slides do not show that piece and it is not in the block. Was it cut through? Is it a floater? Is it real? Investigations ensue. Even genetic testing of the fragment may be done to resolve the issue. 

Tim Morken
Supervisor, Histology / IPOX
UCSF Medical Center
San Francisco, CA  
 
-----Original Message-----
From: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu [mailto:histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of Merced M Leiker
Sent: Thursday, January 07, 2010 9:02 AM
To: Edwards, Richard E.; 'DKBoyd <@t> chs.net'; Marcia Funk
Cc: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu; Cho, Soo-Jin
Subject: RE: [Histonet] Policy on Floaters

I second that question! Seems like a lot of hassle (documenting, holding 
meetings) over a bit of waxy tissue left in a water bath (mind you, this is 
coming from a research mind-set where we don't mind these things so much). 
:-)


--On Thursday, January 07, 2010 1:34 PM +0000 "Edwards, Richard E." 
<ree3 <@t> leicester.ac.uk> wrote:

> So, what  exactly is   a  "floater", an extra bit of a previous section
> picked up with the next section in a dirty waterbath, or  an obviously
> extra identifiable piece of tissue  included in/picked up in error during
> grossing;  bit  of  ambiguity  in previous  emails?.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
> [mailto:histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of
> DKBoyd <@t> chs.net Sent: 07 January 2010 13:18
> To: Marcia Funk
> Cc: histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu; Soo-Jin Cho;
> histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu Subject: Re: [Histonet] Policy
> on Floaters
>
> Lots of traffic on this one.  Yes you definitely need a policy.  The
> policy should define how you will "try" to eliminate floaters ie;  clean
> water bath after each block, spray/wipe/change paper towels after each
> specimen while grossing etc.  It also must include how it will be
> resolved.  This covers everyone involved and is considered best practice.
>
> Debbie M. Boyd, HT(ASCP) l Chief Histologist l Southside Regional Medical
> Center I
> 200 Medical Park Boulevard l Petersburg, Va.  23805 l T: 804-765-5050 l
> F:  804-765-5582 l dkboyd <@t> chs.net
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> "Marcia Funk" <FUNKM <@t> mercyhealth.com>
> Sent by: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
> 01/06/2010 05:23 PM
>
> To
> "Mark Tarango" <marktarango <@t> gmail.com>, "Soo-Jin Cho"
> <Soo-Jin.Cho <@t> ucsfmedctr.org>
> cc
> "histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu" <histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu>
> Subject
> Re: [Histonet] Policy on Floaters
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Floaters
> Yes, you are so right, for patient safety and your safety,  policy is a
> must.  Protects you and the patient.
> Marcia
>
>
> Marcia Funk
> Histology Laboratory
> Mercy Medical Center North Iowa
> Mason City, IA, 50401
> 641-422-7907
>
>
>>>> Mark Tarango <marktarango <@t> gmail.com> 01/06/2010 2:21 PM >>>
> Your goal is not to have floaters.  If you get one, your policy should set
> out to determine the cause of these incidents.  You should track who did
> it
> (in a spreadsheet), where it happened (grossing, embedding, cutting...).
> Then you should have a meeting every so often with people from the lab and
> some pathologists where you go over all the incidents, brainstorm for
> corrective actions, and decide about what you can do differently.
>
> Make sure you have the techs invovled or it won't be very effective.
>
> Mark
>
>
>
>
> On Wed, Jan 6, 2010 at 10:45 AM, Cho, Soo-Jin
> <Soo-Jin.Cho <@t> ucsfmedctr.org>wrote:
>
>> Hello, I'm a resident at UCSF currently working on a QA/QI project
>> regarding floaters, with the ultimate goal of formulating a departmental
>> policy regarding floaters.  Despite extensive searching on the internet
> and
>> the Histonet archives, I have not found any concrete examples of
> policies at
>> other institutions and was hoping someone could help me out in this
> regard.
>>  Thank you in advance for your help.
>>
>> Most sincerely,
>> Soo-Jin Cho
>> Anatomic Pathology
>> University of California, San Francisco
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Histonet mailing list
>> Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
>> http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
>>
> _______________________________________________
> Histonet mailing list
> Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
> http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
> _______________________________________________
> Histonet mailing list
> Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
> http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
>
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Disclaimer: This electronic message may contain information that is
> Proprietary, Confidential, or legally privileged or protected. It
> is intended only for the use of the individual(s) and entity named
> in the message. If you are not an intended recipient of this
> message, please notify the sender immediately and delete the
> material from your computer. Do not deliver, distribute or copy
> this message and do not disclose its contents or take any action in
> reliance on the information it contains.
> _______________________________________________
> Histonet mailing list
> Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
> http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
>
> _______________________________________________
> Histonet mailing list
> Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
> http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
>



Merced M Leiker
Research Technician III
Cardiovascular Medicine
348 Biomedical Research Building
State University of New York at Buffalo
3435 Main St, Buffalo, NY 14214  USA
leiker <@t> buffalo.edu
716-829-6118 (Ph)
716-829-2665 (Fx)

No trees were harmed in the sending of this email.
However, many electrons were severely inconvenienced.


_______________________________________________
Histonet mailing list
Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet