ABSTRACT
Buttner has suggested that the idea of quality control in the clinical laboratory began with the publication by Belk and Sunderman in 1947. The Clinical Laboratories Improvement Act, which was enacted in 1967, states that laboratories engaged in interstate commerce in the United States are required to use urine controls or reference samples. For many years, Ames Company, which produces most of the world's routine urinalysis reagent systems, provided its professional representative with solutions to illustrate positive and negative reactions with their urine testing products. The institution of a good quality control program takes time and attention on the part of the quality control supervisor and the laboratory director. Good results are obtained with a quality control program if the overall proficiency of the laboratory is increased and, of course, this is the major goal of a quality control program.
