Quality Assurance

TeleConsult Europe implements a stringent quality policy founded on three principles:

Selection

Performance Monitoring

Performance Reporting

Selection

TeleConsult microbiologsts are recruited and selected based on their education, experience and sub specialty fields. Prior to joining the TeleConsult team, new microbiologists must pass a pre-qualification test as part of our Quality Assurance Program. Subsequently the performance and reporting quality of each individual microbiologist is monitored continuously as outlined below.

Performance Monitoring

To monitor microbiologists’ performance, the TeleConsult Quality Assurance (QA) Program was developed. Its primary objective is to promote patient safety and enhance patient care with accurate, complete and quality consistent microbiological diagnoses and reports.

The Program is executed by the TCE Quality Committee consisting of an expert panel of microbiologists representing all subspecialties who perform:

Retrospective Reviews
20% of microbiology examinations are reviewed at random a day after reporting by a member of the TCE Quality Committee. Any discrepancies in findings with the original reporting microbiologist’s diagnosis are recorded and scored based on a peer score system.
Prospective reviews
In case of doubt of the correct diagnosis the TCE microbiologist can ask the TCE Quality Committee for a second opinion, which is performed immediately before the report is delivered to the referring physician.
Communication of outcome
All discrepancies are communicated to the original reporting microbiologist. In case of clinically significant discrepancies the TCE Quality Committee makes an addendum to the original report and the referring physician of the client clinic is informed by email. In case of unusual or life threatening findings the reporting microbiologist will contact and inform the referring physician without delay.

Performance Reporting

All TCE microbiologists receive a quarterly report on their quality score. This keeps our radiologists informed about their individual performance and creates a drive for constant quality improvement. Moreover it inspires the group to communicate and learn from each other, resulting in overall quality improvement.