Question reference: S4W-15629
- Asked by: Margaret McDougall, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
- Date lodged: 12 June 2013
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Current status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 26 June 2013
Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many NHS microbiology laboratories follow the UK Standards for Microbiology Investigations: Processing Swabs for Group B Streptococcal Carriage.
Answer
This information is not held centrally. However, the UK Standards for Microbiology Investigations (SMI) are endorsed by the Scottish Microbiology Forum (now superseded by the Scottish Microbiology and Virology Network) and each laboratory in Scotland uses these standards as the basis for developing and maintaining their own local standard operating procedures for laboratory investigations. The SMI standards are used as a basis for assessment Clinical Pathology Accreditation inspections and laboratory are therefore expected to adhere to standards recommended by the SMI.