Lab instruments today look nothing like 1975. So why is our Quality Control frighteningly similar?
I should know. In 1975, as a Chief Technologist, my tools were a slide rule and hand-drawn QC charts. Ensuring result quality was my world, and the responsibility was immense, with no clinical chemist for miles.
Fifty years later, our instruments are unrecognizable, yet the QC mindset in many labs is stuck in the past. We’re still clinging to the same statistical rules developed when I started my career. Worse, we’re often applying them ineffectively.
A recent survey from Dr. Westgard revealed a shocking truth: fewer than 70% of labs use their own measured mean and SD for QC. This isn’t just outdated—it’s dangerously ineffective. It’s time to stop pretending the old ways are good enough. The statistical QC of the 1970s cannot manage the complexities of the modern lab. It’s time for a paradigm shift.
This post marks the beginning of a new series where I’ll discuss the urgent move from legacy statistical QC to AI-powered Risk Management. We’ll explore how to build a smarter, safer, and more efficient future for laboratory medicine.
It’s time to leave 1970s QC behind!
Connect with me on Linkedin and join the conversation: Zoe Brooks