Types and frequency of errors during different phases of testing at a clinical medical laboratory of a teaching hospital in Tehran, Iran

Abstract

BACKGROUND: According to official data, 60-70% of clinical decisions about hospitalization and discharge are based on laboratory results. AIMS: The objective of this study is to examine the frequency of errors before, during, and after analysis in a major medical laboratory. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted throughout 2012 (January-December 2012). Errors are recorded by the Quality Control Committee in a specially designed record. RESULTS: A total of 303,866 samples, 2,430,928 tests were received for analysis. The total number of errors was 153,148 (6.3%) (116,392 for inpatients and 36,756 for outpatients). Analysis of the results revealed that about 65.09% of the errors occur across preanalytical phase, whereas 23.2% and 11.68% are related to analytical and postanalytical phase, respectively. CONCLUSION: More than half of the laboratory errors are related to preanalytical phase; therefore, proper training and knowledge of intervening factors are essential for reducing errors and optimizing the quality.