DEVELOPMENT OF THE SYSTEM FOR ASSESSING COMPETENCIES OF PUBLIC HEALTH LABORATORIES (OSH city)

The article discusses challenges and stages of development of the system for assessment and improvement of competencies of Public Health laboratories. Development and implementation of Quality Management System in laboratories goes beyond laboratory tests and measurements, and require additional knowledge and skills in the area of management of laboratory resources, processes and quality. The World Health Organization partner groups and Kyrgyz Accreditation Center provided assistance to the country to comply with requirements of the International Organization for Accreditation Bodies. Procedures and policies, as well as tools for a stepwise implementation of quality in laboratories were developed to maintain the Quality Management System. The article discusses the experience of implementing an integrated management system within the framework of the requirements of three standards ISO/IEC 17025, ISO 17020 and ISO 15189 in Osh city.