Analysis of productivity, quality and cost of first grade laboratories: complete blood count

Objective Assessment of productivity, quality and production costs and dete rmination of the efficiency of top grade clinical laboratories in Mexico. Methods Ten laboratories,were selected from among the total number (52) exi sting in Mexico Cite and the Donabedian model of structure, process and res ults were applied. Blood count was selected as a bracer: Results The principal problems found,were: inadequate distribution of train ed human resources, poor glass material, inadequate analytic process and lo w productivity. These factors are reflected in the unit costs, which exceed reference laboratory costs by 200%. Only 50% of the laboratories analyzed generate reliable results. Only 20% of the laboratories studied operate eff iciently. Conclusions To solve the problems identified requires integral srategies at different levels. A specific recomendation for the improvement of quality and productivity is an assessment of the cost/benefit of creating a central laboratory and using the remaining sites exclusively for the collection of samples.