[Chair remarks of the symposium. "Updated learning from experts in laboratory disciplines"]

Clinical laboratories should collect and keep updated information on issues related with quality management. This symposium was undertaken for an expert review of the updates in laboratory disciplines, including phlebotomy, clinical pulmonology and clinical microbiology. In phlebotomy, safety in blood collection is an ongoing issue and could be ensured by implementing staff education to reinforce methods of avoiding the risk of nerve injuries by selecting an appropriate vessel as well as the use of a butterfly needle. In the pulmonary function test, efforts are necessary to standardize the examination protocol, the quality control method, and prediction equation. In the microbiology laboratory, there is a transition of its role into activities for healthcare-associated infection control, such as the provision of an active surveillance culture, tabulated data on an antibiogram, and trends of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria in relation with antimicrobial use, as well as participation in an integrated team approach. All of the presentations in the symposium were educational and inspiring in providing information useful in daily laboratory practice. Combining the efforts in each discipline of the clinical laboratory on the basis of updated information would support the quality services of the laboratory.