Nationwide quality assurance of high-throughput diagnostic molecular testing during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic : role of the Belgian National Reference Centre

Since the onset of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Belgium, UZ/KU Leuven has played a crucial role as the National Reference Centre (NRC) for respiratory pathogens, to be the first Belgian laboratory to develop and implement laboratory developed diagnostic assays for SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) and later to assess the quality of commercial kits. To meet the growing demand for decentralised testing, both clinical laboratories and government-supported high-throughput platforms were gradually deployed across Belgium. Consequently, the role of the NR... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Janssen, Reile
Cuypers, Lize
Laenen, Lies
Keyaerts, Els
Beuselinck, Kurt
Janssenswillen, Sunita
Slechten, Bram
Bode, Jannes
Wollants, Elke
Van Laethem, Kristel
Rector, Annabel
Bloemen, Mandy
Sijmons, Anke
de Schaetzen, Nathalie
Capron, Arnaud
Van Baelen, Kurt
Pascal, Thierry
Vermeiren, Celine
Bureau, Fabrice
Vandesompele, Jo
De Smet, Pieter
Uten, Wouter
Malonne, Hugues
Kerkhofs, Pierre
De Cock, Jo
Matheeussen, Veerle
Verhasselt, Bruno
Gillet, Laurent
Detry, Gautier
Bearzatto, Bertrand
Degosserie, Jonathan
Henin, Coralie
Pairoux, Gregor
Maes, Piet
Van Ranst, Marc
Lagrou, Katrien
Dequeker, Elisabeth
Andre, Emmanuel
Genomics Belgium Consortium, COVID-19
Dokumenttyp: journalarticle
Erscheinungsdatum: 2024
Schlagwörter: Medicine and Health Sciences / National reference centre / High-throughput testing / Quality assurance / elgium / COVID-19 / SARS-CoV-2
Sprache: Englisch
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-28878320
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/01HQ8GB8V5GJGY18P6EM4G7EC7

Since the onset of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Belgium, UZ/KU Leuven has played a crucial role as the National Reference Centre (NRC) for respiratory pathogens, to be the first Belgian laboratory to develop and implement laboratory developed diagnostic assays for SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) and later to assess the quality of commercial kits. To meet the growing demand for decentralised testing, both clinical laboratories and government-supported high-throughput platforms were gradually deployed across Belgium. Consequently, the role of the NRC transitioned from a specialised testing laboratory to strengthening capacity and coordinating quality assurance. Here, we outline the measures taken by the NRC, the national public health institute Sciensano and the executing clinical laboratories to ensure effective quality management of molecular testing throughout the initial two years of the pandemic (March 2020 to March 2022).