Competency information
Details
Interpret laboratory data in light of clinical details and prepare basic interpretive written reports on patients with at least two of the following:
- Polycythaemia
- Peripheral blood with >20% blast cells
- Pancytopenia
- Lymphocytosis
- Thrombocytosis
Considerations
- The clinical features and haematological characteristics of:
- Differential diagnosis of primary and secondary polycythaemia
- Haematological malignancy
- Pancytopenia can be a presenting feature of non-malignant as well as leukaemia/MDS, consider, HCL, severe sepsis, PNH etc
- Lymphocytosis consider reactive v malignant
- High platelets consider reactive v malignant
- Relevant specific national/international guidelines
- The information to be included in an interpretative report
- How to construct an interpretative report and the format required for presentation
- The lines of communication and responsibility for reporting reactions or complications both in the clinical management of the reaction and the documentation and reporting of the incident
- Limits of responsibility in the authorisation and issue of interpretative reports
- Normal and abnormal results and their significance to the clinical question or condition
- Importance of pre-analytical variables
- Reference values and the significance of abnormal results
- Limitations of interpretation and reporting
- How to deal with out-of-range quality control values
Relevant learning outcomes
| # | Outcome |
|---|---|
| # 1 | Outcome Receive, prepare and process specimens for solid tumour investigation To include supervised dissection, tissue selection cutting, fixation and staining, as appropriate |
| # 2 | Outcome Receive, prepare and process specimens for haematological malignancy investigation To include sampling methods, correct sample procedures, collection and storage of samples nucleic acid extraction and quality assessment |
| # 5 | Outcome Perform a range of laboratory techniques used in screening and investigating histopathological and haematological malignancy disorders |
| # 6 | Outcome Apply the principles of internal quality control and external quality assessment and draw conclusions about assay performance |
| # 7 | Outcome Use laboratory IT systems for the safe handling, processing and storage of patient data |
| # 8 | Outcome Interpret results of clinical diagnostic tests |