Quality Assurance Scheme Research Articles

Stakeholder, citizen and consumer interests in farm animal welfare

AbstractThe assessment and improvement of animal welfare are the tasks and joint responsibility of many stakeholders involved in the agro-food chain. This paper first looks at the supply side of the chain, and presents different stakeholder views on farm animal welfare, discussing the potential for market differentiation, communication and labelling related to farm animal welfare standards. From the demand side, the paper then examines the duality that exists between citizens’ attitudes and consumer behaviour in relation to animal welfare and livestock products, and identifies distinct segments of citizens and consumers. Although the importance that citizens claim to attach to animal welfare seems relatively strong, consumers’ interest in information about animal welfare is only moderate compared to other product attributes, and the market shares of products with a distinct animal welfare identity remain small. The paper concludes that while there seems to be substantial consensus between supply chain stakeholders, citizens and consumers about what is relevant for achieving an acceptable level of farm animal welfare, the differentiation and satisfaction potential of increased animal welfareper seas a stand-alone product attribute seems limited to particular niche market segments. It argues that improved farm animal welfare is more likely be realised and valued by consumers when it is integrated within a broader concept of quality, such as quality assurance or sustainability schemes.

대기 중 다환방향족탄화수소 측정방법의 성능평가 - 하이볼륨 샘플링 및 GC/MS 분석방법을 대상으로

In this study, a measurement method was evaluated for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the ambient atmosphere. PAHs were sampled by high-volume samplers, and were then analysed with a GC/MS system. Particulate PAHs were collected on quartz fiber filter, while vapor phase PAHs were adsorbed on polyurethane foam (PUF). Target compounds included a total of 36 PAHs, which are known to be frequently detected in the urban atmosphere. It was not necessary to clean-up samples before samples were analyzed using GC/MS, and the overall performance of the method was tested by a variety of quality control and quality assurance schemes. It is generally known that the clean-up procedure can negatively affect the recovery of samples. Precision and accuracy was evaluated using SRM provided by US NIST, and the results were generally satisfactory and reliable. However, the GC/MS method appeared not to be adequate for 6-rings PAHs, such as coronene, due to its lower sensitivity. In addition, collection efficiencies for low molecular compounds, such as 2-rings PAHs, were poor because of the lower retention volume of the PUF adsorbent. As a result, it was concluded that the method based on high-volume sampling and GC/MS analysis can give very reliable data by simultaneous sampling of both particulate and vapor phases for 3-rings to 5-rings PAHs of environmental concern.

The International Food Standard: Bureaucratic Burden or Helpful Management Instrument in Global Markets? Empirical Results from the German Food Industry

At this point in time, quality assurance schemes in the food industry and the agricultural sector are becoming increasingly popular. The International Food Standard (IFS) is one of the most important means of certification. This article presents the results of an empirical study in the German food industry. In early 2005, 65 food manufacturers answered an extensive questionnaire and gave insights into their perceptions of the advantages and disadvantages of certification systems. The study focuses on the IFS, which has gained much relevance in the German food industry because all major German retailers have subscribed to the system and, for the most part, no longer accept suppliers that do not have IFS certificates. Three different groups were identified by using a cluster analysis, namely, the managers, the supporters, and the rejecters. These clusters show the different attitudes toward the IFS and are further specified in the following article.

Quality Assurance in Her-2 Testing—Redefining the Gold Standard

The landscape of testing for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (Her-2)1 for breast cancer is changing rapidly. In 5 years we have moved from a test designed to predict the response to trastuzumab (Herceptin®) in patients with relapsed poor-prognosis disease to the position where deciding whether fit women with early breast cancer should be given adjuvant chemotherapy is based in part on this test result (1). Because adjuvant chemotherapy confers a survival benefit for approximately 10% of women treated and therefore produces little or no benefit and at least short- to medium-term harm to the other 90%, we need to be certain that our tests are reliable. It is also imperative that the laboratory data on which trial outcomes are judged are absolutely reliable. Sadly, this standard cannot be applied to Her-2 testing at the present time. Xiao and colleagues in the current issue of the Journal (2) have laid out new standards for Her-2 testing that should pave the way for a stepwise increase in quality in this area and supply a paradigm for testing other therapeutically important indicators in cancer management. A brief appraisal of current Her-2 testing practice worldwide will help to place the contribution of Xiao et al. in context. Her-2 testing is routinely carried out on primary breast cancers, either on the diagnostic core biopsy or on the excised tumor. Typically, such testing takes the form of an immunohistochemical (IHC) test on a tissue section, followed by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis in IHC-equivocal cases. Data from the UK National External Quality Assurance Scheme (NEQAS) audit for 2007 show …

The role of peer review in Norwegian quality assurance: potential consequences for excellence and diversity

The article analyses the role of peer review within broader external quality assurance schemes. Based on an analytical framework emphasising that modern quality assurance schemes are designed as a balancing act between standardised guidelines and professional judgement, the article uses data from a recent evaluation of NOKUT, the Norwegian Quality Assurance Agency, to investigate whether and how the peer review process has maintained its central role in quality assurance, not least with respect to promoting excellence and diversity. The findings indicate that what is presented as judgements based on peer expertise, turn out to be a rather technical process in which pre-defined rigid criteria and standards are imperative. In the conclusion, the role of peer review is discussed in relation to developments in European higher education.

Experience with an external quality assurance scheme for antimicrobial susceptibility testing of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in India, 2001–2007

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Neisseria gonorrhoeae compromises patient treatment and disease control. Epidemiologically based surveillance of AMR in gonococci is needed to optimize standard treatment regimens. Validation of AMR surveillance data depends on external quality assurance schemes (EQAS). AMR surveillance data quality in India during 2001-2007 was assessed by participants testing panels of reference strains and repeated re-challenge with identical controls, accompanied by educative feedback. Overall, correct results were obtained for 944 (82%) of 1030 tests performed for five 'core' antibiotics. Aggregated error rates decreased from 33% (123 tests) in 2001 to 4.4% (180 tests) in 2007 with improvements in individual laboratory performance. Cephalosporin test results produced high error rates without improvement. Reference centre and network laboratory collaboration produced marked improvements in test performance through annual EQAS integrating proficiency testing and participant education. More frequent EQAS cycles would assist this process. These experiences may be applicable in similar settings elsewhere.

The external quality assurance of phylloquinone (vitamin K1) analysis in human serum

The vitamin K external quality assurance scheme (KEQAS) aims to assist in the harmonization of phylloquinone (vitamin K(1)) analysis in order to improve the comparability of clinical and nutritional studies. Serum samples were despatched to 17 groups from eight countries during 2000-2006. Using pilot data (1996-1999), an analytical performance target of 20% absolute difference from the all-laboratory trimmed mean (ALTM) was assigned and formed the basis for interlaboratory comparison. Assay specificity, analytical bias and assay performance were evaluated. From 21 batches of samples distributed, 414 results were reported of which 2.7% were outliers. The mean interlaboratory absolute difference from the ALTM was 21.7% with 47% of groups consistently meeting the performance target. The mean interlaboratory coefficient of variation was 29.6%. The false positive rate for phylloquinone depleted samples was high at 35%. Bias was found to be independent of HPLC-detector type (fluorescence vs electrochemical). Assay characteristics for the measurement of phylloquinone in human serum compare favourably with methods for analytes at equivalent concentrations. The high proportion of false positive results suggest that poor assay specificity at low phylloquinone concentrations is a common problem, which in the clinical setting could lead to underreporting of vitamin K deficiency.

The Virtuous Bicycle: a delivery vehicle for improved farm animal welfare

AbstractThis paper briefly reviews the development of monitoring procedures used for the assessment of husbandry and welfare within Farm Quality Assurance (QA) schemes. Most current protocols are based on measures of the resources, records and management provisions necessary to promote good husbandry. However, it is now generally accepted that monitoring protocols should be largely or wholly made up of direct, animal-based measurements of animal welfare. Whether based on provisions or outcomes, many current schemes lack impact, partly because they do not necessarily lead to effective action on-farm and partly through lack of public awareness or trust in the claimed benefits of the scheme. This paper proposes the concept of the ‘Virtuous Bicycle’ as a delivery vehicle for improvements in farm animal welfare through simultaneous operation of two virtuous cycles, one on-farm, involving assessment, action and review, the other at the retailer level, involving assurance and promotion, based on proof of compliance.

Certification Schemes in the European Agri-Food Sector

In the last few years, following a number of food crises, quality assurance systems have been widely introduced into the European agri-food sector. Customers' growing quality demands and their undermined trust in food safety are just two of the driving forces behind this trend. With regard to quality assurance schemes, Central and Eastern European agriculture and food industries are in a catch-up position. To compensate for the lack of research in this field, this paper presents an overview of certification schemes in the European agriculture and food industry with a special emphasis on Central and Eastern Europe. It also discusses the characteristics and scope of the schemes as well as possible determinants and effects of the trend observed in recent years.

The Traceability of Pork Meat

The current paper is part of a complex study: “Designing an information system for monitoring the traceability of the pig meat production”. In the European Union (EU) product safety and product quality represent basic conditions for international trade. In order to fulfill those requirements, all actors across the supply chain must implement a system capable to tracking and tracing a particular unit located within the supply chain; this goal could be achieved implementing an association of a flow of information with the physical flow of goods. In the EU were developed and implemented some standards and protocols for Food Quality Assurance Schemes (QAS) elaborated by various groups and organizations .

External Quality Assurance of HER2 FISH and ISH Testing

The American Society of Clinical Oncology/College of American Pathologists guidelines highlighted the critical importance of quality assurance in diagnostic testing for HER2. Unstained formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded human breast carcinoma cell line sections were circulated to scheme participants on 9 occasions. "Reference laboratories" reported results for the HER2/chromosome 17 ratio and HER2 copy number for 3 years for each cell line, including 418 sets of results (1,671 results total). The number of participants was 62 laboratories in the final analysis. The mean and SD of results from reference laboratories demonstrated consistency during the 3-year period. The percentage of laboratories achieving "appropriate" results ranged from 45% to 88%, and the percentage achieving "inappropriate" results ranged from 5% to 29%. No consistent effect of the HER2 in situ hybridization testing method was demonstrated. Participation in external quality assurance schemes is a valuable mechanism for demonstrating and acquiring consistency for HER2 testing by in situ hybridization. Poor performance can be corrected via assistance and advice.

Favoring Standards-Based over Self-Review External Review Processes in University Quality Assurance Schemes

Favoring Standards-Based over Self-Review External Review Processes in University Quality Assurance Schemes

Quality of analytical performance in inherited metabolic disorders: the role of ERNDIM

External quality assurance (EQA) schemes are essential for improvement of accuracy, reliability and comparability of results of biochemical genetic tests. ERNDIM (European Research Network for evaluation and improvement of screening, Diagnosis and treatment of Inherited disorders of Metabolism), established in 1994, operates nine EQA schemes for biochemical genetic testing according to international norms and recommendations. These comprise qualitative schemes for amino acids, organic acids, purines and pyrimidines, special assays in serum and urine and white cell cystine, qualitative organic acid and acylcarnitine schemes, as well as diagnostic proficiency testing. The total number of participants has increased from 123 in 1994 to 268 in 2007. Additional activities include participation in the Eurogentest project, a laboratory directory, training, education and development of guidelines. Results from the quantitative amino acid scheme with 170 participants reveal good variation within and between laboratories of below 10% for 10 amino acids; good within-laboratory variation but intermediate inter-laboratory variation of 10-22% for 11 amino acids; and higher variation within and between laboratories for 8 amino acids. Results on samples from 51 inherited metabolic disorders from two of five centres organizing diagnostic proficiency testing indicate overall diagnostic efficiency above 80% and improved performance of individual laboratories. Comparison of results for 10 and 12 compounds in the serum and urine special assay schemes respectively for 2000 and 2007 reveal clear improvement of precision within laboratories and in inter-laboratory variation. There is considerable evidence that performance in biochemical genetic testing has improved since the introduction of ERNDIM schemes.

Confirmation of Declared Provenance of European Extra Virgin Olive Oil Samples by NIR Spectroscopy

The potential of near-infrared transflectance spectroscopy (1100-2498 nm) combined with chemometric techniques to confirm the geographical origin of European olive oil samples was evaluated. In total, 913 extra virgin olive oil samples (210 Ligurian and 703 non-Ligurian) were collected over three consecutive harvests (2005, 2006, and 2007). A multivariate spectral fingerprint for Ligurian olive oil was developed and deployed to confirm or refute a claim that any given sample was Ligurian. Samples were pseudorandomly split into calibration (n = 280) and validation sets (n = 633); the only selection constraint applied was to insist on equal numbers of Ligurian and non-Ligurian samples in the calibration set. Following preliminary examination by principal component analysis, the full spectrum modeling method applied to the spectral data set was discriminant partial least-squares regression; various data pretreatments were also investigated. The best models correctly predicted the origins of samples in the prediction set up to 92.8 and 81.5% for Ligurian and non-Ligurian olive oil samples, respectively, using a first-derivative data pretreatment. The potential of this approach in commercial traceability and quality assurance schemes is noted.

Qualitative urinary organic acid analysis: Methodological approaches and performance

A programme for proficiency testing of biochemical genetics laboratories undertaking urinary qualitative organic acid analysis and its results for 50 samples examined for factors contributing to poor performance are described. Urine samples from patients in whom inherited metabolic disorders have been confirmed as well as control urines were circulated to participants and the results from 94 laboratories were evaluated. Laboratories showed variability both in terms of their individual performance and on a disease-specific basis. In general, conditions including methylmalonic aciduria, propionic aciduria, isovaleric aciduria, mevalonic aciduria, Canavan disease and 3-methylcrotonyl-CoA carboxylase were readily identified. Detection was poorer for other diseases such as glutaric aciduria type II, glyceric aciduria and, in one sample, 3-methylcrotonyl-CoA carboxylase deficiency. To identify the factors that allow some laboratories to perform well on a consistent basis while others perform badly, we devised a questionnaire and compared the responses with the results for performance in the scheme. A trend towards better performance could be demonstrated for those laboratories that regularly use internal quality control (QC) samples in their sample preparation (p = 0.079) and those that participate in further external quality assurance (EQA) schemes (p = 0,040). Clinicians who depend upon these diagnostic services to identify patients with these defects and the laboratories that provide them should be aware of the potential for missed diagnoses and the factors that may lead to improved performance.

Evaluation of test results of microbiology laboratories of North India for standard tests for syphilis under an external quality assurance scheme

Test results of syphilis serology are critical due to inter- and intralaboratory variability. The accuracy of results is crucial in the control of the disease. This study was aimed to compare results of laboratories and performance of methods for syphilis serology. Results of Veneral Disease Reference Laboratory (VDRL) or rapid plasma reagin (RPR) tests of 25 microbiology laboratories were compared in six proficiency testing sentinel surveys. The performance of laboratories was compared with the results of a hypothetical average laboratory. Of the 141 participants, 104 (73.8%) responded. The inter-laboratory variability was exhibited by 62.2% of samples tested by VDRL and 58.7% by RPR test. Intralaboratory variability was observed in 46.7% samples. There was an insignificant improvement in proficiency testing (PT) performance over the years with a significant improvement in 2007. The common errors involved departure from testing protocols. Syphilis serology proficiency testing is needed in India for reliability in test results.

Anthropological Measurement of Lower Limb and Foot Bones Using Multi‐Detector Computed Tomography

Anthropological examination of defleshed bones is the gold standard for osteological measurement in forensic practice. However, multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) offers the opportunity of three-dimensional imaging of skeletal elements, allowing measurement of bones in any plane without defleshing. We present our experiences of the examination of 15 human lower limbs in different states of decomposition using MDCT. We present our method of imaging and radiological measurement of the bones including sex assessment. The radiological measurements were undertaken by three professional groups--anthropology, radiology, and forensic pathology--both at the site of scanning and at a remote site. The results were compared to anthropological oestological assessment of the defleshed bones. We discuss the limitations of this technique and the potential applications of our observations. We introduce the concept of remote radiological anthropological measurement of bones, so-called tele-anthro-radiology and the role that this could play in providing the facility for standardization of protocols, international peer review and quality assurance schemes.

Tandem mass spectrometry in food safety assessment: The determination of phthalates in olive oil

A gas chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (GC–MS/MS) method for the detection of six phthalates in olive oil was developed. A gel permeation chromatography (GPC) clean-up step with cyclohexane:dichoromethane 7:3 as mobile phase was employed to remove the high-molecular mass species present in oil. Two ionization methodologies, i.e. electron (EI) and isobutane-chemical ionization (CI), were compared, in MS/MS mode, to achieve better analytical performances. An overall evaluation of all analytical parameters shows that the EI-MS/MS approach provides satisfactory results and is to be preferred to CI-MS/MS, at least in the case of the examined analytes. The observed accuracies, ranging from 71.7% to 112.2%, and the RSD values less than 9.7%, confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method in the assay of phthalate content in such a complex matrix as olive oil. The proposed protocol for the identification and assay of phthalates in olive oil might be of interest for the implementation of the QS (quality assurance scheme) for residue monitoring in food safety assessment.

Operational practices associated with foodborne disease outbreaks in the catering industry in England and Wales.

Catering businesses continue to be the most common setting for foodborne disease outbreaks. In a study of catering businesses in England and Wales, operational practices relating to the supply, preparation, and service of food in 88 businesses associated with outbreaks were compared with those practices at 88 control businesses. Operational practices did not differ significantly between case and control businesses but larger small medium-size enterprise (SME) businesses were more likely to be associated with foodborne disease outbreaks than were micro-SME businesses. Businesses associated with outbreaks of Salmonella infection were less likely to use local or national suppliers but instead used regional suppliers, especially for eggs. This practice was the only significantly independent operational practice associated with outbreaks of Salmonella infection. Regional egg suppliers also were more likely to be used by businesses associated with outbreaks attributed to food vehicles containing eggs. Businesses associated with egg-associated outbreaks were less likely to use eggs produced under an approved quality assurance scheme, suggesting that the underlying risk associated with using regional suppliers may relate to the use of contaminated eggs.

Contribución de un programa de calidad asistencial al desarrollo de un Instituto de Gestión Clínica del Aparato Locomotor

In 1999, the Institute for the Musculoskeletal System (ICAL) was established in Barcelona's Hospital Clínic as an institution entrusted with the organization of the orthopedic and trauma surgery, rheumatology and rehabilitation services offered by the Hospital. At the same time, with a view to making sure that the change was as smooth as possible, a specific quality assurance scheme was implemented, whereby a series of improvements were identified as necessary, which had to be made within one calendar year, and a series of both technical and perceived quality indicators were identified for monitoring. The results obtained in the last five years show that there has been an improvement in most of the indicators (except those related to surgical infections and voluntary discharges), contributing to the strengthening and the prestige of this innovative Institute devoted to the management of musculoskeletal conditions, which makes the patient the focus of the healthcare effort and the physician the mainstay of clinical management.