New microbiology EQA programs

In 2020, Oneworld Accuracy has added 4 new EQA programs to better ensure the quality of testing in your microbiology laboratories.

• With the global rise in surveillance of antimicrobial resistance, laboratories must be able to quickly and efficiently identify resistant microorganisms. As carbapenem are broad antimicrobials often use against multi-drug resistant bacteria, the rise of infections caused by carbapenem-resistant isolates are of great public health importance as they are associated with mortality rates upwards of 50% , greatly due to the lack of treatment alternatives for these isolates. Oneworld Accuracy has created a Carbapenem Resistant Enterobacteriaceae screening program (CRES435) for culture and/or molecular methods.
• Group B Streptococcus is a common bacterium often carried in the intestines or lower genital tract. It is usually harmless in adults, but in newborns, it can cause a serious illness known as Group B Strep disease. Oneworld Accuracy has created a Group B Streptococcus screening program (STRB435) for culture and/or molecular methods.
• Some fungal infections have a long treatment period, thus correct diagnosis early on plays an important role in patient compliance to treatment protocols and elimination of the pathogen. MYCC435 is a new program that is replacing both MOLC (Mold/Yeast Culture) and YEAC (Yeast culture) programs in 2020, as we realize more and more laboratories are now capable to test for both mold and yeast.
• Malaria infection is one of the world’s most prevalent public health concerns and according to WHO statistics, an estimated 3.4 billion people around the world remain at risk of being infected with malaria. For diagnosis, besides microscopy methods, rapid test kits (RDT) are frequently utilized as a point-of-care test to screen for malaria infections in blood.  Oneworld Accuracy has created a Malaria Antigen program (MAAG435) to assess the performance of Malaria RDTs.
• Detection of Trichomonas vaginalis infection may be accomplished by a variety of techniques, ranging from clinical diagnosis to laboratory-based testing. The most commonly used diagnostic test is wet preparation microscopy. However, wet preparation microscopy is only 40 to 60% sensitive, even among symptomatic women, and the proportion of infections that exhibit no symptoms ranges from 40 to 80%. Oneworld Accuracy has created a program (TVAG435) for the detection of Trichomonas vaginalis by any detection method.

Please contact us at [e-mail] if you want more information or to enroll in these programs.