AIHA LAP 2021 Summer/Fall Newsletter

Note from the Managing Director:

We hope that everyone has had some time off this summer and that you continue to stay safe and well. We are pleased to share some updates and other information with you in this Fall edition of the LAP E-News. Please let us know if you have questions or need additional information about anything you read here.

Enjoy what little is left of the summer and happy fall!

Cheryl O. Morton

Important Information for Laboratories

Remote Assessments

It has been over a year since AIHA LAP paused our on-site assessments and started conducting remote assessments to mitigate risks to both assessors and laboratories. Based on the feedback received from our stakeholders, we are convinced that AIHA LAP’s remote assessments can be conducted with the same technical rigor as our on-site assessments. Assessing remotely also allowed for all AIHA LAP laboratories to be accredited to the 2017 version of ISO/IEC 17025; meeting the June 2021 deadline established by the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation.

Our plan is to continue to primarily conduct remote assessments until further notice. If you have not undergone a remote assessment, please keep the following in mind if you have one scheduled:

• You will first be screened to determine your readiness for a remote assessment. Laboratories that are not prepared will have their assessments temporarily postponed.
• To help our laboratories understand and prepare for remote assessments, we encourage you to go to our website to review the FAQ document and video.
• To ensure confidence in our remote assessment process, all assessor reports from remote assessments undergo a review by a member of our Technical Advisory Panel.
• Our procedures call for post remote surveillances to be scheduled one (1) year after all remote assessments so that we, as an accreditation body, can have even greater confidence in the remote assessment process. As we enter year two (2) of remote assessments, some of these surveillances may themselves be conducted remotely.
• Please remember to complete the survey after your assessment (a link will be sent to you after the closing meeting of your assessment) and add specific comments about your remote assessment. You may also email me or any LAP staff member to share your thoughts about your remote assessment experience at any time. Your feedback is very important to improve our current processes and update our future training.

AIHA LAP is allowing on-site assessments in circumstances where there is minimal risk. Through a web-based survey, we collect exposure-related information from both the assigned site assessor and the laboratory, and if the risks are considered minimal, an on-site assessment (or one that is blended with a remote) may move forward. All decisions about proceeding with an on-site assessment, in whole or in part, will be made on a case-by-case basis.

As always, please contact your Accreditation Specialist should you require assistance or wish to discuss specific issues with an upcoming remote or on-site assessment.

SARS-CoV-2 Added to EMLAP

AIHA LAP has added analysis of viruses using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to the Environmental Microbiology Laboratory Accreditation Program’s (EMLAP) Molecular Scope Category for laboratories analyzing SARS-CoV-2 and related viruses on surfaces and in air. Contact Drake McGregor at dmcgregor@aiha.org or at (703) 846-0739 for more information on how to gain accreditation under the EMLAP Molecular Scope Category or for help in finding a qualified microbiology lab that can conduct RT-PCR analyses.

Changes to Test Methods

AIHA LAP accredited laboratories should be aware of the following recent changes to select OSHA and ASTM test methods:

OSHA Sampling Group Method: OSHA has published a new sampling group method for diisocyanate analytes: OSHA Sampling and Analysis Method 5002, Organic Vapor Sampling Group 3 (OVSG-3) Diisocyanate Analytes Collected on Coated Glass Fiber Filters. This method consolidates a number of previous diisocyanate methods for sampling on a single medium type, and simultaneous analysis. The previous OSHA methods that covered the method 5002 analytes included OSHA 42, OSHA 47, OSHA PV2034, OSHA PV2092, and OSHA PV2125. The pre-existing methods replaced by method 5002 will all soon be withdrawn to avoid confusion about which specific method should be used for sampling.

Please visit OSHA's website to access the most recent list of withdrawn OSHA methods

ASTM E1613 Withdrawn: Test Method ASTM E1613 was also recently withdrawn and effectively replaced by two other ASTM standard test methods:

• E3193-20, Standard Test Method for Measurement of Lead (Pb) in Dust by Wipe, Paint, and Soil by Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (FAAS)
• E3203-19a, Standard Test Method for Determination of Lead in Dried Paint, Soil, and Wipe Samples by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES)

For more information on how to replace your methods, please contact the AIHA LAP Team.

Revisions to AIHA LAP Appendices G-H and Guidance Documents

Revised Checklist Now in Use

Due to the September 2020 publication of ILAC P14: Policy for Measurement Uncertainty in Calibration, AIHA LAP made administrative changes to Appendix G – Evaluation of Measurement Uncertainty and to the Guidance on the Evaluation of Measurement Uncertainty. The revised Appendix G and the Guidance document became effective on March 31, 2021 and were posted to the AIHA LAP Policy website. Track changes versions of these documents can also be found on the AIHA LAP Policy page.

Also, due to the July 2020 publication of the ILAC Policy on Metrological Traceability of Measurement Results, AIHA LAP, LLC made administrative changes to Appendix H – Metrological Traceability of Measurement Results. The revised Appendix and the Guidance document were posted on the AIHA LAP Policies and Guidelines website with a July 27, 2021, effective date. Again, track changes versions of these documents can also be found on the AIHA LAP Policy page.

New Site Assessor Checklist Published

Administrative changes made to Appendices G and H means that AIHA LAP updated the Site Assessor Checklist to Revision 21 with an effective date of July 27, 2021. Please contact us for a copy of the Site Assessor Checklist Revision 21.

Data Management System Fully Launched

Labs to Submit Their Own PT Data

This past May, AIHA LAP announced its official launch of the LAP Online Data Management System (DMS). Now all laboratories can submit applications for accreditation, review invoices, update key personnel positions, and report PT results all from their Main Dashboard in DMS. A LAP Document Library has also been created to act as a Resource Center for laboratories. Work instructions, video training modules, surveys, FAQs, forms, and policy/procedure documents are located in the LAP Document Library for labs to access at any time. All laboratory contacts should have received their log-in credentials with instructions on creating a unique password.

With the opening of DMS, all Proficiency Testing Data is now required to be submitted by laboratories through DMS as PT reports are received. This will include PT data from all schemes/vendors used by the lab for an accredited FoT (i.e., Internal PT, PHENOVA, EMPAT). A simple form has been created in DMS for labs to quickly submit the report to LAP, enabling AIHA LAP to construct a PT record for each laboratory. This record will be utilized to streamline the application submission process for reaccreditation and to speed the review of PT records during site assessments. All laboratory contacts should have received information and instructional materials on regular PT reporting through DMS with their credentials on May 3rd.

Please feel free to reach out to Drake McGregor, Manager, Accreditation and Technical Programs, at dmcgregor@aiha.org if you did not receive your log-in credentials, you need assistance logging in and/or submitting information.

AIHA LAP Staff News

Please be aware of the following AIHA LAP Staff Changes:

Departures:

Geneva Bowman, Quality Systems and Technical Program Manager, left her position in April to pursue a new opportunity. Accreditation Specialist Beth Durman will be leaving AIHA LAP at the end of August. We wish Geneva and Beth well in their future endeavors.

Promotions:

We are pleased to announce that Lauren Schnack has been promoted to Manager, Quality Systems and will assume all quality-related duties including handling complaints, corrective/preventive actions, internal/external audits, management reviews, and maintenance of LAP’s quality management system. We are also pleased to announce that Drake McGregor has been promoted to Manager, Accreditation and Technical Programs. He will continue his role as Team expert on our data management system, data collection, surveys, stakeholder training, and other special projects.

New Hires:

We are also pleased to welcome two new Accreditation Specialists, Matt Ogles and Keelyn Crossin who will facilitate and assist laboratories through the accreditation process. Both come to AIHA LAP with science backgrounds in Biomedical Engineering and Biotechnology, respectively.

Other News

AIHA LAP Signs a MOU with TTLABS

June 9, 2021, was World Accreditation Day and AIHA LAP announced that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding with a Caribbean accreditation body—the Trinidad and Tobago Laboratory Accreditation Service (TTLABS.) TTLABS is transitioning into a new accreditation entity, the Trinidad and Tobago Accreditation Service for Conformity Assessment (TTASCA), which will be the national accreditation body (AB) for conformity assessment services in Trinidad and Tobago and offer services to support the Caribbean. TTLABS has requested AIHA LAP’s assistance in helping TTASCA prepare to become a signatory of the Inter-American Accreditation Cooperation (IAAC) Multilateral Arrangement (MLA), an agreement through which ABs around the world recognize the accreditations issued by other signatories. AIHA LAP will mentor the TTLABS staff on operations, technology, and assessment practices to help the newly established AB meet the rigors of becoming an IAAC MLA signatory.

IAAC is a regional association of accreditation bodies and other organizations interested in conformity assessment in the Americas. Both AIHA LAP and TTLABS are IAAC members.

World Accreditation Day is a global initiative established by the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation and the International Accreditation Foundation. Events celebrating World Accreditation Day occur in over 90 countries worldwide to raise awareness of the value of laboratory accreditation. This year’s World Accreditation Day theme was “Accreditation: Supporting Sustainable Development Goals.”

AIHA LAP to Conduct Another Survey

In 2020, AIHA LAP developed and adopted a new strategic plan to guide our focus over the next five years and prepare us to continue delivering on the LAP mission in the years to follow. As part of this new strategic plan, we have been conducting research to better understand the needs of our market.

Please take the AIHA LAP survey to share your thoughts.

If you’ve already participated in the AIHA LAP survey, or received a link through an e-mail invitation, thank you in advance for taking the time to respond.

As a thank you, all respondents who complete the survey will be given an opportunity to be entered into a drawing to win one of three free $100 Amazon gift cards.

The August Synergist is the Lab Edition

The August edition of the Synergist magazine is the laboratory edition. AIHA LAP accredited labs are encouraged to click on the following links for laboratory-related articles included in the August 2021 edition:

• Sampling for SARS-CoV-2: PCR Versus Culturing (By Evan L. Floyd and K. A. N. Aithinne)
• The Lone Lab Worker: Best Practices for Protecting Researchers (By Paterick Thayn, Janet Eggum, Angela Dartt, and Dawn Too)
• Managing Reproductive and Developmental Hazards: Elements of a Successful Workplace Program (By April Clayton, Diana Peroni, and Garth Graham
• Best Practices for Proper Chemical Storage (By Ashley Augspurger and Rachael Perriello)

Thank You to LAP Speakers at AIHce EXP 2021

A big thank you to AIHA LAP speakers who gave presentations during Special Education Sessions at this year’s virtual AIHce EXP 2021.

• Risk-Based Thinking: Bob Lieckfield explored concepts of risk-based thinking that can be used to identify, prioritize, and mitigate risks in a laboratory as well as how laboratories can identify opportunities for improvement. Cheryl Morton joined Bob on this panel to describe how AIHA LAP has used risk-based thinking over the past year to address risks and make other important decisions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Accredited RT-PCR Analysis for SARS CoV-2: Joshua Birkebak Technical Director at Assured Bio (LAP-183867) presented several case-studies to demonstrate how RT qPCR analysis has been used by IH and EHS professionals in medical and commercial settings to inform decision making.

Contact Cheryl Morton at cmorton@aiha.org for more information on these sessions or if you are interested in presenting at next year’s AIHce EXP.

Newly Accredited Labs

Congratulations to the following laboratories for becoming newly accredited by AIHA LAP in 2021:

To review AIHA LAP’s full list of newly accredited and reaccredited labs, please visit our Directory.