Proficiency testing catalogue - LGC Standards

Frequently askedquestionstest materials, and staff must be encouragedto treat them appropriately and learn fromtheir results in a constructive manner.Laboratories will learn very little about thequality of their routine work if the PT testmaterials are given special treatment, suchas carrying out a much higher number ofanalyses, in order to be evaluated assatisfactory. This may in fact compromisethe quality of routine measurements as adisproportionate level of effort is beingexpended for the PT.Q: Do I have to use specific methods toanalyse the test materials?A: Unless otherwise instructed, participantsshould analyse the test materials usingany method that they feel is appropriate.Participants are asked to treat the PT materialin the same way as a routine test material.Participants may be asked to state theirmethod when reporting results. It isimportant that this information is accurateas results are analysed and reportedaccording to the method stated.Q: Do I have to report my results within aspecific timescale?A: Deadlines are specified for the return ofresults, to ensure the timely issue of assignedvalues and reports to participants. For eachscheme a closure date will therefore bespecified. For certain tests there may also bea date specified by which examination of thetest material is recommended to have beencommenced. This is to ensure that sufficienttime is available to complete the test andreport results in time for the deadline date.Q: How should I report my results usingPORTAL?A: For the majority of schemes, results arereturned through our bespoke electronicreporting software, PORTAL. Once you areready to report your results, please go towww.lgcpt.com/portal you will need to login using your Lab ID, Username andPassword. We advise that prior to usingPORTAL you read the user guide which isavailable at www.lgcpt.com/portal select‘help’ from the menu. If you require furtherassistance please contact our support team.Email: support@lgcpt.comTel: +44(0)161 762 2500. For your localLGC Standards office see pages 64 - 65.For some schemes (or parts of a scheme)alternative reporting mechanisms areprovided, details of which will be emailedto participants prior to test materials receipt.It is recommended that results andcalculations are checked thoroughly beforereporting. Results should be reportedclearly, in the format and units detailed inthe scheme description. If calculations areused, unless instructed otherwise, thelaboratory is to report only the finalcalculated result.In general, results of zero should not bereported; results should be reporteddepending upon the detection limit of themethod used, for example, cannot beincluded in the data analysis and thereforecan not be allocated a performance score.Results may be rounded up or down in thereport and may not therefore be identical toyour original reported result. However,performance scores are calculated usingthe unrounded results submitted and so areunaffected by rounding. The effects ofrounding may also mean that occasionallypercentage totals do not add up exactlyto 100%.Part of the challenge of proficiency testingis the ability to perform calculations and56 Tel: +44 (0)161 762 2500 Fax: +44 (0)161 762 2501