Participation in a recognised proficiency testing (PT) scheme is strongly recommended by accreditation bodies for laboratories accredited to ISO/IEC 17025. The important role of proficiency testing in quality assurance has been increasingly recognised in recent years, and there has been a subsequent growth in the number and range of schemes available to laboratories. Participation in PT schemes gives laboratories an objective, independent measure of the quality of their output, and is a highly effective diagnostic tool for a laboratory�s quality system. It is therefore important for analytical laboratories to obtain the optimum benefit from participation in proficiency testing.
What are the benefits?
This course will help you:
Understand how proficiency testing works and the different types of scheme that are available;
� select the most appropriate scheme(s) in which to participate;
� interpret and use effectively the results and evaluation from PT schemes;
� understand the statistical approaches used in proficiency testing.
Contents
The course will cover:
An introduction to PT, how it works and its objectives
Selecting PT schemes - what is available and appropriate
Statistics used in PT schemes
Interpretation of PT scheme data
Feedback on laboratory performance and corrective actions
Who should attend?
This course is designed for laboratory staff (chemists and microbiologists) who have responsibility for deciding which PT schemes are appropriate, and for Quality Managers or others who use and interpret PT results. It is also suitable for customers and auditors who use PT scheme performance as a tool in monitoring a laboratory�s quality.