Quality Improvement Study: Bone Marrow (BM) Biopsy H&E Staining

A Quality Assurance program is an integral part of any anatomic pathology laboratory. As in many industries, processes are established to ensure that high levels of practice standards are met in order to reduce errors and improve patient safety. To be successful, a program should be customized to meet the needs of the individual organization. An effective quality assessment evaluation must encompass all steps involved in the testing process. For example, it is of little value to assess a special staining technique without including the preparation of the section and the H&E staining process that accounts for 95% of the procedure.1 In a pathology laboratory, procedures must assure adequate specimen identification, safe and accurate performance of the test, and effective communication of the results. While difficult to measure, outcome indicators are the most relevant in assessment of how the tests contribute to patient diagnosis and treatment.2