Accreditation and Quality Assurance最新文献

{"title":"Interlaboratory comparisons of chemical measurements: Quo Vadis?","authors":"Juris Meija,&nbsp;Antonio Possolo","doi":"10.1007/s00769-022-01505-y","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s00769-022-01505-y","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>In numerous articles and editorials, many of which were published in ACQUAL, Paul De Bièvre laid out challenges time and again about how the application of statistical methods can help improve our understanding of chemical measurements. Paul’s insights and incisive criticism were as illuminating and as provocative as in all other areas that he looked into—from counting to consensus building, from the validity of common statistical assumptions to the impact of model uncertainty. This memorial contribution briefly revisits some of these concerns illustrated by examples from interlaboratory comparisons and proposes an optimistic outlook for how the statistical arts practised in close collaboration between chemist and statistician will continue to add value to the chemical sciences.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"28 3","pages":"89 - 93"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2022-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s00769-022-01505-y.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"4212345","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"True value, error, and measurement uncertainty: two views","authors":"Jong Wha Lee,&nbsp;Euijin Hwang,&nbsp;Raghu N. Kacker","doi":"10.1007/s00769-022-01508-9","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s00769-022-01508-9","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Measurement uncertainty, as established in the <i>Guide to the Expression of Uncertainty in Measurement</i> (GUM), is a central concept in metrology. The GUM is known for its detailed discussions on the concepts of true value and error and their relation to measurement uncertainty. However, the GUM statements on true value and error have been a source of conceptual controversies, sometimes leading to inconsistent or unclear descriptions on true value, error, and uncertainty. Here, we discuss that such controversies arise from an unclear distinction between two views of measurement with fundamentally different premises. In one of the views, called the realist view, measurement is regarded as an activity of estimating or determining the true value, in which case measurement uncertainty represents the dispersion of reasonable estimates of true values. In the other view, called the instrumentalist view, measurement is regarded as an activity of assigning values to a measurand, in which case measurement uncertainty represents the dispersion of values that could reasonably be assigned to a measurand. By examining the philosophy of measurement in each view, we show that a clear understanding of the two views is critical for understanding the GUM.\u0000</p></div>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"27 4","pages":"235 - 242"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2022-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s00769-022-01508-9.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"4547382","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Improved residue on ignition method for the mass fraction of inorganic impurities of pure organic substances","authors":"Chao Chen,&nbsp;Haifeng Wang,&nbsp;Jia Li,&nbsp;Guohua Sun","doi":"10.1007/s00769-022-01507-w","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s00769-022-01507-w","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The mass fraction of inorganic impurities of a pure organic substance can be determined by the residue on ignition method and then used to calculate the purity according to mass balance theory. The conventional residue on ignition method is insensitive. In this study, a novel crucible made of annealed aluminum foil was used instead of the conventional crucible. The mass of the annealed aluminum crucible on ignition was repeatable (standard deviation of 1.4 µg). The mass of the annealed aluminum crucible remained stable in the ambient atmosphere because no water adsorbed to the surface of annealed aluminum. When annealed at high temperature, the mass of the aluminum crucible increased owing to the oxidation of aluminum. On subsequent annealing, the amorphous aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃) film transformed into a γ-Al₂O₃ film which prevented the inner aluminum from oxidation and adsorption of water. The limit of quantification of the mass of inorganic impurities determined by the residue on ignition method using the annealed aluminum crucible (30 µg) was much lower than that using a platinum crucible (500 µg). When the mass of solute of sodium chloride (NaCl) aqueous solution was in the range 20 µg–200 µg, the recovery of the NaCl mass fraction was in the range 96 %–104 %. The residue on ignition method was applied to eight pure organic substances. The improved residue on ignition method using the annealed aluminum crucible determined the mass fractions of inorganic impurities of the pure organic substances with high sensitivity and accuracy.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"27 4","pages":"243 - 248"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2022-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"4214705","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Assessment and Mitigation of Cardiovascular Risk for Prostate Cancer Patients: A Review of the Evidence.","authors":"Patrick Davey, Kyriacos Alexandrou","doi":"10.1155/2022/2976811","DOIUrl":"10.1155/2022/2976811","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a common comorbidity in patients with prostate cancer. In this review, we summarize the published literature on the association of cardiovascular risk with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) treatment and explore the potential differences between the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists and antagonists and the molecular mechanisms that may be involved. We also provide a practical outlook on the identification of underlying CV risk and explore the different stratification tools available.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>While not definitive, the current evidence suggests that GnRH antagonists may be associated with lower rates of certain CV events vs agonists, particularly in patients with preexisting CVD. Risk reduction strategies such as lifestyle advice, consideration of ADT modality, and comedications may help to reduce CV risk factors and improve outcomes in prostate cancer patients receiving ADT.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Given all the data that is currently available, identification of baseline CV risk factors may be key to risk mitigation in patients with prostate cancer receiving ADT.</p>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"13 4-5","pages":"2976811"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-05-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9158798/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41286374","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables in Indonesia: findings of five-year proficiency testing","authors":"Mariska M. Pitoi,&nbsp;Harmoko Harmoko,&nbsp;Astika Tresnawati,&nbsp;Hilman F. Pardede,&nbsp;Miranti Ariyani,&nbsp;Yohanes S. Ridwan,&nbsp;Retno Yusiasih","doi":"10.1007/s00769-022-01502-1","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s00769-022-01502-1","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The first proficiency testing of pesticides in fruits and vegetables in Indonesia is reported. This report covers the findings of five-year proficiency testings. Every year, from 2016 to 2020, 18–25 laboratories join the proficiency testings and analyze 5–11 pesticides in tomato, orange, lettuce, brown rice, strawberry respectively. The number of laboratories participating in the proficiency testings tends to increase, although only 38 % of the laboratories are able to report all pesticides. More than 72 % of participants use QuEChERS or its modifications for sample preparation, all participants use gas chromatography or liquid chromatography for separation, at least 20 % of participants still rely on detectors other than mass spectrophotometer for detection, and 20 %–60 % of participants use matrix-matched calibration for quantification. The performance of laboratories is evaluated as <i>z</i>-score with an average of 90.8 % achieves satisfactory results while 3.3 % and 5.9 % achieve questionable and unsatisfactory results correspondingly. Overall, the performance of laboratory participants during proficiency testings is good. However, improvement is still needed, especially for the number of target pesticides for multi-residue pesticide analysis. Moreover, unsatisfactory <i>z</i>-scores are likely to be resulted from laboratories which use conventional solvent extraction, use detectors other than mass spectrometers, and are not accredited.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"27 4","pages":"181 - 193"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2022-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s00769-022-01502-1.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"4430066","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comparing uncertainties—Are they really different?","authors":"Peter D. Rostron,&nbsp;Tom Fearn,&nbsp;Michael H. Ramsey","doi":"10.1007/s00769-022-01501-2","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s00769-022-01501-2","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Uncertainties occur at all stages of a measurement process. Quantification of these uncertainties is important in order to make reliable decisions based on these measurement results. In some cases it can be useful to be able to compare the uncertainties associated with different measurement methods, in order to establish the method that is most reliable. A comparison can also be made between uncertainties that have themselves been evaluated using different estimation procedures. This paper discusses the comparison of uncertainties in chemical measurements using case study examples. Depending on the context, both exact and approximate <i>F</i>-tests are used to compare the ratios of uncertainties, while in some cases the approach is to compare separate confidence intervals.\u0000</p></div>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"27 3","pages":"133 - 142"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2022-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s00769-022-01501-2.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"4266363","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Inter-comparability of analytical laboratories in quantifying polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons collected from industrial emission sources","authors":"Adam Lilley,&nbsp;Marc D. Coleman,&nbsp;Sharon L. Goddard,&nbsp;Ellie G. Mills,&nbsp;Richard J. C. Brown,&nbsp;Rod A. Robinson,&nbsp;Martin J. Clack","doi":"10.1007/s00769-022-01497-9","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s00769-022-01497-9","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>We report an inter-laboratory comparison of analytical laboratories involved in the quantification of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) collected by sampling organisations from industrial stacks (e.g. waste incinerators). Four reference solutions were prepared containing nominally 10 ng/ml, 50 ng/ml, 200 ng/ml and 500 ng/ml of naphthalene, benzo[a]anthracene, chrysene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[k]fluoranthene, benzo[a]pyrene, indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene and dibenzo[a,h]anthracene prior to despatch to five analytical laboratories with quantification requested in accordance with ISO 11338-2. Across four of the laboratories (the 5th returned unusable data), significant deviations from the reference concentrations were found frequently in excess of the benchmarks of 37 %—from the validation data in ISO 11338-2—and 21 %—from the Environment Agency for England’s Monitoring Certification Scheme. Also, much of the variance was systemic in nature indicating a possible issue with the quality of some of the stock solutions used by the laboratories for calibration. Whilst more proficiency testing would be welcomed to monitor and improve performance, this should be provided in addition to more support for analytical laboratories. A key mechanism of support is the standards themselves and there is a timely opportunity in that ISO/TC 146/SC 1 are due to revise ISO 11338. Possible improvements include full validation of high performance liquid chromatography and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry methods (to better understand what performance can reasonably be expected from laboratories), a requirement to correct results to individual laboratory PAH extraction efficiency, and a required uncertainty stipulated for the overall method (also aiding setting pass/fail criteria for proficiency testing).</p></div>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"27 3","pages":"155 - 163"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2022-05-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s00769-022-01497-9.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"4134870","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Feasible stoichiometric reactions for SI traceable bromate assays","authors":"Toshiaki Asakai","doi":"10.1007/s00769-022-01500-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s00769-022-01500-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Evaluating chemical purities by different analytical methods based on different reactions is one of the effective approaches to decrease the contribution of unknown biases that each method has, and to establish reliable reference materials. This paper describes new applications of precipitation titration with silver(I) and redox back titration with iron(II) to the assays of bromate ions which were different from a conventional titrimetric reaction with thiosulfate ions. Bromate ions are often used as a standard for redox titration as well as for evaluating water and food quality by instrumental analyses. Required measurands in these instrumental analyses are not redox properties of the ions, but the mass fraction in chemicals. Bromate ions have been determined by a conventional redox titration: iodine (triiodide) liberated by bromate ions in an acidic potassium iodide solution has been titrated with a standardized sodium thiosulfate solution. New titrimetric approaches described in the present paper directly allow to evaluate the mass fraction of the ions without iodine liberation processes in the conventional reaction, and contribute reliable analytical assays. These approaches were also attempted to the assays of iodate ions, which is one of the useful standards.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"27 3","pages":"125 - 132"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2022-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"4097734","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The path to continual improvement and business excellence: compliance to ISO standards versus a business excellence approach","authors":"Joanna Gray,&nbsp;Jennifer Ross,&nbsp;Tony Badrick","doi":"10.1007/s00769-022-01503-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s00769-022-01503-0","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>ISO Standards provide a minimal benchmark for organisations to achieve accreditation or certification and maintain compliance to the core elements of the standard. These standards assist organisations in establishing and maintaining a quality management system. Business Excellence models are integrated collections of proven activities for how an organisation should operate to pursue excellence or world-class performance and sustainability. The focus is on the customers and internal processes to meet customer expectations. The pursuit of ISO compliance and business excellence are interrelated, synergistic and will lead to common approaches for progress and sustainability if well managed. Embracing quality assurance systems, tools of organisational excellence and benchmarking against the best international standards and practices are essential for businesses operating in a global community. The Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia Quality Assurance Programs Pty Ltd has long been a compliance-driven organisation, but more recently embraced the pursuit of business excellence by adopting the Australian Business Excellence Framework. These two approaches to quality management and continual improvement are compared and the value of incorporating both approaches is explored.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"27 4","pages":"195 - 203"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2022-04-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s00769-022-01503-0.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"3999461","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Provision of chemical proficiency testing round on corn-based snack food for laboratories in the Asia-Pacific","authors":"Jolly C. Cotara,&nbsp;Leah C. Dajay,&nbsp;Melissa O. Guerra,&nbsp;Mylene B. Martin,&nbsp;Jennifer C. Laurea,&nbsp;Prudencio E. Adona Jr.,&nbsp;Maricar Giel Y. Parcarey,&nbsp;Chriscel Z. Capili","doi":"10.1007/s00769-022-01498-8","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s00769-022-01498-8","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>As the only ISO/IEC 17043:2010-accredited food PT provider in the Philippines since 2013, the Department of Science and Technology-Food and Nutrition Research Institute successfully organized a PT Round on corn-based snack food for nutrition labeling parameters. The PT Round aimed at evaluating the performance of chemical laboratories in the Asia-Pacific area on the analysis of proximates (moisture, fat, protein and ash), total dietary fiber (TDF), saturated fatty acids and minerals (iron, calcium, sodium, potassium and zinc) in corn-based snack food through an interlaboratory comparison. A sufficiently homogeneous corn-based snack food test item was distributed to 67 registered laboratories. Results were evaluated using appropriate statistical procedures based on ISO 13528:2015. The mass fractions such as moisture, fat, protein, saturated fatty acids, calcium, sodium, potassium and zinc in corn-based snack food, which have <i>x</i>_pt with negligible uncertainties, i.e., <i>u</i>(<i>x</i>_pt) ≤ 0.3<i>σ</i>_pt, were issued with <i>z</i> scores, while other measurands with wide variability in the results, i.e., <i>u</i>(<i>x</i>_pt) &gt; 0.3<i>σ</i>_pt, were issued with <i>z</i>′ scores. The <i>x</i>_pt (in % for proximates, TDF and saturated fatty acids, and 10^–5 g/g for minerals) and the percentage of laboratories that obtained “Satisfactory” performance (│<i>z</i> or <i>z</i>′ score│ ≤ 2) were: moisture (2.95, 88 %), fat (15.75, 91 %), protein (9.75, 69 %), ash (1.61, 64 %), TDF (5.04, 54 %), saturated fatty acid (5.90, 78 %), iron (2.93, 69 %), calcium (161, 74 %), sodium (139, 82 %), potassium (170, 77 %) and zinc (2.68, 85 %). This PT Round allowed to assess laboratories’ performances on the analysis of nutrition labeling parameters in corn-based snack food and improvement on performance by conducting investigative and corrective actions for those participants with “Warning” and “Action” signals.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":454,"journal":{"name":"Accreditation and Quality Assurance","volume":"27 3","pages":"165 - 179"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2022-04-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s00769-022-01498-8.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"5104991","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}