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Country report: Clinical chemistry in Indonesia
1Department of Clinical Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Indonesia, Jakarta.
Summary
The Indonesian External Quality Assurance Scheme assessed 700 clinical labs, finding overall good performance in clinical chemistry. Bilirubin testing showed excellent results, while sodium, potassium, and chloride assays require improvement.
Area of Science:
- Clinical Chemistry
- Laboratory Quality Assurance
- Public Health
Background:
- External Quality Assurance Schemes (EQAS) are crucial for maintaining laboratory performance standards.
- The Indonesian External Quality Assurance Scheme (Program Nasional Pemantapan Kualitas Laboratorium Kesehatan bidang Kimia Klinik) monitors clinical chemistry laboratory quality across Indonesia.
- Understanding the performance variations among Indonesian clinical laboratories is essential for targeted quality improvement initiatives.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the performance of 700 Indonesian clinical laboratories participating in the national EQAS for clinical chemistry.
- To identify analytes with the best and worst performance based on the World Health Organization (WHO) scoring system.
- To provide data for improving the quality of clinical laboratory services in Indonesia.
Main Methods:
- Data from 700 clinical laboratories across 27 Indonesian provinces were analyzed.
- Seventeen key clinical chemistry analytes were assessed, including bilirubin, glucose, cholesterol, and electrolytes.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) scoring system was employed to calculate the overall and analyte-specific performance scores (VIS).
Main Results:
- An overall median VIS of 128 indicated fairly good performance across participating laboratories.
- Bilirubin testing demonstrated the highest performance with a median VIS of 33.
- Electrolytes, specifically sodium (median VIS 177), potassium (162), and chloride (209), exhibited the poorest performance.
Conclusions:
- The Indonesian EQAS for clinical chemistry reveals generally good laboratory performance, with notable excellence in bilirubin analysis.
- Significant challenges exist in the accurate measurement of sodium, potassium, and chloride, necessitating focused interventions.
- Continuous monitoring and targeted quality improvement programs are vital for enhancing Indonesian clinical laboratory services.