A laboratorian's view on the College of American Pathologists' Laboratory Accreditation Program for Clinical Laboratories.

The quality of laboratory testing is a critical component of quality patient care.1,2 One way to assure laboratory quality is to utilize an impartial and objective system for the evalua­ tion of clinical laboratories. The need for external and independent review3 thus pro­ vides the prime rationale for the Laboratory Accreditation Program (LAP) of the College of American Pathologists (CAP), which was initi­ ated in 1961 and has since grown in size, com­ plexity and effectiveness.4 In the following short review, a general introduction will be given to the CAP’s LAP. The laboratory accreditation process will be illustrated by describing a typical CAP inspec­ tion, specifically that of a clinical cytogeneics laboratory.