Quality assessment of requisitions and conditions of biological samples in Lapa and Ipiranga public health laboratories in the city of São Paulo

Abstract

 To evaluate the quality of information in exams requisitions and conditions of the biological samples received in the sectors of Immunology and Microbiology of the Lapa and Ipiranga Laboratories in São Paulo City Administration. We conducted a study to evaluate test requisitions and biological samples coming from eight health unities. Four of those eight unities are Reference Centers in STD/AIDS and the remaining four are Basic Health Unities. Data collection has been carried out through a questionnaire during the month of August, 2006. The described analysis was performed and results were compared to the technical norms of good practices issued by the National Agency for Sanitary Surveillance and the Municipal Government of the City of São Paulo. Conditions of the biological samples received were mostly in compliance to the recommendations. Both Lapa and Ipiranga laboratories presented better filled out requests in the Reference Centers in STD/AIDS than in the Basic Units of Health. In services of low complexity were identified flaws in the quality of information, compromising test results. Results indicate a need for investment in training and spreading of good practices in operative processes in the pre-analytical phase. evaluation, quality indicators, health services, clinical laboratory errors, pre-analytical phase.