The Eastern Ontario Regional Laboratory Association (EORLA) has reached a new milestone in quality care by elevating its accreditation status with the Accreditation Canada Diagnostics (ACD) ISO 15189 Plus™ program. EORLA, a not-for-profit organization operating 18 licensed hospital-based laboratories across Ontario’s Champlain Region, is trusted to deliver over 14 million diagnostic tests each year. These vital tests, powered by a team of over 790 Medical Laboratory Professionals, alongside 89 Medical staff, 59 Administration Staff and 20 Residents, are essential to clinical programs across the region.
With its expansive scale and multi-site operations, EORLA faces unique challenges with preparing for accreditation and keeping quality processes standardized and effective. Between assessment events, they risk potential gaps or diminished momentum that can strain management and staff. Recognizing the importance of ongoing excellence, EORLA voluntarily chose to raise its accreditation commitment by upgrading to the ISO 15189 Plus™ program following its 2022 accreditation cycle.
The transition to ISO 15189 Plus™ is a signal of EORLA’s proactive approach to quality. EORLA now undergoes rigorous on-site assessments every two years as a part to its full accreditation cycle. The addition of a mid-cycle assessment visit at all their laboratories provides third-party assurance of continuous quality compliance and includes a new certificate with full international recognition of competence.
EORLA recently completed its first mid-cycle assessment. Lorraine Hart, EORLA’s Integrated Quality Manager, shared her insights on the benefits of their elevated accreditation status, emphasizing the value of external review in bolstering staff confidence, fostering a culture of quality, and achieving operational excellence across all sites:
1. Why did you/your team decide to upgrade to the ISO Plus program?
EORLA decided to upgrade to the ISO 15189 Plus™ program to be recognized nationally and internationally for the high standards of quality we maintain. It was a great way to demonstrate our commitment to quality, boost our reputation, highlight our value to existing and potential clients, and prove that we have the overall quality and reliability to do any lab work.
2. What are some of the positive impacts?
We started using a new system that allowed us to readily document and audit evidence at all times. It worked pretty well for this visit, and we will continue to improve it. Getting ready was easier as there was a two-year gap from the last peer assessment instead of four. This makes it easier for everyone to prepare the evidence needed for the assessors. It is also easier for me to keep track of the evidence and identify and rectify gaps. Lastly, having an on-site assessment every two years keeps quality at the forefront not only for the technical staff but also for EORLA’s senior leadership and our hospitals.
3. Do you have any other thoughts you'd like to add?
Having a unified assessment across all EORLA sites has allowed ACD to create a single spreadsheet listing our non-conformances and their corrective actions. This is absolutely wonderful and has made getting everything together so much easier, especially since we have 300km between our furthest sites.
Acknowledgements
Accreditation Canada Diagnostics extends our sincere thanks to Lorraine Hart for her time and insights in sharing the EORLA team’s accreditation journey.
We value all client feedback as an essential tool for continuous improvement. During this recent visit, we implemented several updates inspired by previous client feedback to enhance the multi-site assessment experience. Notably, we introduced a unified review of the quality management system across all sites during one session and streamlined corrective action submissions into a single spreadsheet format for multi-site groups. In the spirit of the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle, we have received valuable feedback from the sites. We rely on our clients as our invaluable “second pair of eyes”.
Our goal is to design and implement processes that are meticulously planned and responsive to our clients’ needs. Openness to client feedback is vital to our commitment to continuous improvement, enabling us to adjust, rethink, and refine our approach — ultimately helping us to “walk the talk.”
We congratulate the EORLA team on a successful mid-cycle assessment and commend their commitment to quality with their upgrade to the15189 ISO Plus™ program. This achievement demonstrates EORLA’s unmatched commitment to quality and brings them closer to the goal of being accreditation ready every day.