RIQAS Point of Care EQA
RIQAS Point of Care EQA
Designed to improve the quality of Point of Care Testing (POCT) in locations such as pharmacies, GP surgeries, hospital out patient departments, sports clinics, supermarkets, diagnostic/treatment and walk-in centres.
RIQAS Point of Care EQA provides independent evidence of the accuracy and reliability of test results.
Why RIQAS Point of Care?
Programme Offering
Tests
Role
Matrix
Lipids (Total Cholesterol & HDL Cholesterol)*
- Risk Factor for heart Disease
- Monitoring lipid lowering therapy
Whole Blood
HbA1c (Glycated Hemoglobin)*
- Diagnosing diabetes mellitus
- Monitoring treatment
- Encouraging self-management
Whole Blood
CRP (C Reactive Protein)*
- Early detection of infectious disease
- Identifying need for antibiotic treatment
Whole Blood
Glucose / Ketones
- Diagnose and monitor diabetes
- Monitor the presence of hypoglycemia (low blood glucose) and hyperglycemia (high blood glucose)
- To determine whether excessive ketones are present in the blood, to detect diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA)
Serum
International Normalised Ratio (INR)
- Used to measure the effect of anticoagulant drugs such as warfarin
- Help diagnose a bleeding disorder; to help estimate the severity of liver disease
Whole Blood
Key Cycle Dates
RQ9181 Distribution Month Sample Distributed Result Submission Deadline January 2024 8th January 17th January February 2024 5th February 14th February March 2024 4th March 13th March April 2024 2nd April 10th April May 2024 6th May 15th May June 2024 3rd June 12th June July 2024 1st July 10th July August 2024 5th August 14th August September 2024 2nd September 11th September October 2024 7th October 16th October November 2024 4th November 13th November December 2024 2nd December 11th December What Participants Say
What participants say
Our unrivalled commitment to quality and service ensures high levels of customer satisfaction, this is evident from the responses to our latest customer satisfaction survey:
“All in all a quick and efficient service”
“Good online system”
“Very helpful team”
“Excellent training”
“They are an experienced team”
“Very satisfied with the service that we receive”
“Very good value for money”
“The website is great”
The Importance of Quality Assurance
Importance of quality assurance
Quality assurance is an essential aspect of any clinical/diagnostic testing service and is aimed at ensuring the accuracy and reliability of patients’ results. The right result allows the right clinical advice to be offered in a timely manner. Quality assurance operates at two levels:Internal Quality Control
Internal Quality Control includes operator training/ competency assessment, analyser/ test system maintenance, and adherence to policies/ processes. Whilst some point of care analysers include inbuilt quality checks, cross-check analysis against samples with known levels provides immediate assurance and evidence that a patient’s result is safe to report.External Quality Assessment
External Quality Assessment involves analysis of samples with unknown levels that have been distributed by an external organisation. Participants are informed how their results compare with other participants, hence providing independent evidence of performance. Increasingly, participation in an external quality assessment scheme is becoming a mandatory requirement where health and healthcare services are being provided.
EQA provides assurance to both staff and customers that testing provides accurate and reliable results.
Want to know more?
Contact us or download the RIQAS Point of Care catalogue to learn more.
Continue Reading
Frequently Asked Questions
RIQAS
Contact Us
Pre-Eclampsia Control
The Pre-eclampsia Control is intended for use with in vitro diagnostic assays for the quantitative determination of placental growth factor (PlGF) and soluble fms‑like tyrosine kinase‑1 (sFlt-1) in human serum and plasma.
The Pre-eclampsia Control is assayed with target values and is suitable for use on various immunoassay analysers. The Pre-eclampsia Control is for use by trained laboratory professionals and can be used in determining the precision of testing systems and in identifying sources of variation.
Features & Benefits
- – Liquid frozen for user convenience
- – Human based serum ensuring a commutable sample matrix
- – 30 days open vial stability when stored at 2ºC to 8ºC keeping waste and costs to a minimum
- – True third party control providing an unbiased assessment of performance
- – Assayed target values provided
Analytes
- – sFlt-1
- – PIGF
Active Vitamin B12 Quality Control
The Randox Acusera Active Vitamin B12 Control is designed to deliver a cost-effective, high quality solution for use in the quantitative determination of Active Vitamin B12 in human serum and plasma.
The human material based Active B12 Controls are assayed with target values provided and are suitable for use on various analysers.
Features & Benefits
- Liquid frozen for user convenience
- Human based serum ensuring a commutable sample matrix
- True Third Party control providing unbiased assessment of performance
- An impressive open vial stability of 30 days at 2° to 8°C helping to keep waste to a minimum
| Description | Size | Analytes | Cat No |
|---|---|---|---|
| Active Vitamin B12 Control Level 1 | 3 x 2 ml | 1 | VB10524 |
| Active Vitamin B12 Control Level 2 | 3 x 2 ml | 1 | VB10525 |
Analytes
- Active Vitamin B12 (Holotranscobalamin/HoloTC)
Bone Markers (Serum) Control
The Lyophilised Serum Bone Marker Control is intended for use with in vitro diagnostic assays for the quantitative determination of Procollagen Type 1 N-Terminal Propeptide (P1NP), N-MID Osteocalcin (OC) and Bone Alkaline Phosphatase (B-ALP) in serum samples.
This Lyophilised Serum Bone Marker Control is assayed with target values and is suitable for use on automated analysers.
Features & Benefits
- – Lyophilised for enhanced stability
- – True third party control providing an unbiased assessment of performance
- – Three clinically relevant levels available
- – Human based serum providing a matrix similar to the patient sample
- – 1 year shelf life from date of manufacture allowing for long term QC monitoring and a decrease in new lot validation studies
- – 14- day reconstituted open vial stability applies for PINP and B-ALP helping to keep waste to a minimum, 1-day reconstituted stability for N-MID Osteocalcin
Analytes
- – PINP
- – N-MID Osteocalcin
- – Bone-ALP
*No claims are made regarding values and stability.
Ultra-Low PSA Quality Control
The Acusera ultra-low PSA control delivers a true third party solution for use in monitoring the performance of in vitro diagnostic assays used in the quantitative determination of low levels of PSA.
The control has been optimised for use with Roche systems but is suitable for use across a variety of other platforms.
| Name | Unit | Target | Analyser |
| Ultra-Low PSA | ng/ml | 0.055 * | Roche Cobas e801 |
* Example of values for Roche Cobas e801. Other systems may vary dependent on laboratory assignment. Typical values displayed, please see control IFU for lot specific values.
Features & Benefits
- Impressive 30-day stability at +2°C to +8°C minimising waste
- Liquid ready-to-use control ensuring minimal sample preparation
- True third-party control providing an unbiased assessment of performance
- Manufactured using human based material providing a matrix similar to the patient sample
- 1 year shelf life from date of manufacture ensuring continuity of lot supply
- Target values for specific instruments are available
This control is for Research Use Only (RUO)
| Description | Size | Analytes | Cat No | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ultra-Low PSA Control | 6 x 1ml | 1 | TU10523 | |
Analyte
- Total PSA
Xanthochromia Quality Control
The Randox Acusera Xanthochromia Control is designed to deliver a cost-effective, true third party solution for use in monitoring the performance of Bilirubin and Oxyhaemoglobin in Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) using a spectrophotometer.
Aqueous based with components of human origin, the Xanthochromia Controls are unassayed and are suitable for use with various UV spectrophotometers.
Supplied in a liquid frozen format, this control should be treated in the same manner as a patient sample.
Features & Benefits
- Liquid frozen format for convenience and reduced handling errors
- Human Based Material
- True Third Party control providing unbiased assessment of performance
- An Open Vial stability of 2 days at 2° to 8°C. Stable for 11 weeks when stored unopened at -18° to -24°C helping to keep waste to a minimum.
Analytes
- Billirubin
- Oxyhaemoglobin
*No claims are made regarding values and stability.
BNP Quality Control
The new Acusera BNP Control is designed for use with in vitro diagnostics assays for the quantitative determination of BNP in human serum and plasma. The BNP control delivers an unbiased independent assessment of analytical performance, helping to ensure accurate and reliable patient testing for BNP.
With a 30 day open-vial stability, the BNP control will reduce waste, whilst remaining easy and convenient to use.
This tri-level control is optimised for use on Beckman, Abbott and Siemens analysers however, it can be used across other platforms. Our control will provide accurate and reliable results that your laboratory can trust.
Features & Benefits
- 30-day stability at +2°C to +8°C minimising waste.
- Liquid ready-to-use control ensuring no preparation of material is required and therefore eliminates manual error.
- True third-party control providing an unbiased assessment of performance.
- Manufactured using human serum providing a matrix similar to the patient sample.
- Optimised for use with Abbott, Beckman and Siemens. Also suitable for use with other platforms.
Analyte
- Brain Natriuretic Peptide (BNP)
Randox QC Resource Hub
Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH) Quality Control
The Randox Acusera AMH control is designed for use as a third-party control for the quantitative determination of Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH). An AMH test is often used to check a woman’s ability to produce eggs that can be fertilized for pregnancy. Thus, helping women to make informed decisions about their health.
Available in a liquid frozen format, this control should be treated in the same manner as a patient sample.
Features & Benefits
- 30-day stability at +2°C to +8°C
- Liquid Frozen format for convenience and reduced handling errors
- True third-party control providing an unbiased assessment of performance
- Manufactured using human serum, ensuring commutable sample matrix
- Assayed target values provided eliminating the need to assign values in-house
- Control available at recommended cut-off values for AMH
| Description | Pack Size | Cat. Number | Typical Values Beckman DXL / Roche ng/ml | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMH Control 1 | 3 x 2ml | AMH10509 | 0.5 | |
| AMH Control 2 | 3 x 2ml | AMH10514 | 1.0 | |
| AMH Control 3 | 3 x 2ml | AMH10515 | 6.0 | |
| AMH Control 4 | 3 x 2ml | AMH10516 | 16.0 | |
Analyte
- Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH)
Serum Indices Quality Control
The Randox Acusera Serum Indices control is designed to be used to monitor an IVD instrument’s response in the detection of haemolyzed, icteric and lipemic (HIL) samples. This control can be utilised in laboratory interference testing to assist in improving error detection of pre-analytical errors affecting clinical chemistry testing.
This control provides a full range of clinically relevant testing levels, including a negative (-) and three positives (+, ++ & +++)
Features & Benefits
- Lyophilised for enhanced stability
- Manufactured using human serum, ensuring commutable sample matrix
- 2-year shelf life from date of manufacture
- True third party control providing unbiased assessment of performance
- Reconstituted stability of 14 days at 2°C – 8°C
- 4 separate levels available including -, +, ++ & +++
| Description | Size | Analytes | Cat No | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Serum Indices Control | 4 x 5 ml | 3 | SI10448 | |
Analytes
- Haemolysis (H)
- Icterus (I)
- Lipemia (L)
