What constitutes satisfactory performance?

Serology and NAT studies

Satisfactory performance implies that:

• core-negative samples are found to be non-reactive;
• core-positive samples are found to be reactive;
• the ratios obtained are consistent/coherent for serial dilutions of ;
• the ratio interpretations are correct.

Immuno-haematology studies

Satisfactory performance implies that:

• whole blood samples are correctly identified as core-positive for their respective ABO groups and for each of the Rhesus, Kell, Duffy, Kidd and MNS phenotypes;
• plasma samples containing irregular antibodies and classified as core-positive are found to be positive. If specificity testing is performed, the correct antibody specificities have to be determined and must correspond to the specificity found in pre-testing.

Microbiology studies

Satisfactory performance implies that:

• negative samples are found to be non-contaminated;
• positive samples are found to be contaminated. routinely, identification results have to be submitted and the identification must be correct.

It should be noted that it is the performance of the laboratory that is evaluated, not the performance of the assays used by the participants.