QUALITY - THE NEXT 6 MONTHS

The eclectic mix of participants in the forum had a surprisingly singu lar focus when it came to the topic of quality in clinical laboratorie s. All sensed that the time is right for a transition from laws, rules , and inspections to a true quality-based system. Such a system can ac hieve the goals, implicit and explicit, that are the rationale for the multiplicity of regulations affecting today's laboratories. A true qu ality-based system has great potential benefits to laboratories, regul ators, and manufacturers, and ultimately to our true customers, the pa tients. The benefits include lower costs, superior products, and bette r test results; in short, better patient tare. This transition will be possible only through formation of a ''Quality Alliance,'' composed o f those skilled in the ''theory'' of quality-laboratory personnel, man ufacturers, and regulators, acting as one to implement the quality sys tem. The Quality Alliance requires a team of individuals with differen t skills, aligned as one, for the purpose of achieving a common goal. On the basis of views expressed in this Forum, our collective future w ill be defined by the evolving Quality Alliance, an alliance focused o n true quality systems in clinical laboratories.