The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has published its survey, 'Quality Assurance and Proficiency Testing for Molecular Genetic Testing: survey of 18 OECD member countries'. The OECD states that it recognises that preventative medicine can profoundly contribute to the improvement of public health, “…provided governments implement the appropriate regulatory and legal frameworks to retain the confidence of the public.” Specifically, genetic tests can be successfully integrated into clinical practice if governments could ensure the quality of those tests. The OECD undertook to survey 18 member countries (see list below) for the availability and extent of their molecular genetic testing (MGT) services, the quality assurance policies used in their laboratories, their policies for handling samples and genetic data, and policies for cross border transport of specimens. Responses were received from 827 Laboratory Directors. Dr Rob Elles, Head of the Manchester National Genetics Reference Laboratory, chaired the expert group for the project. Some of the conclusions drawn from the data were:
The report sees accreditation as a major factor in ensuring quality. They recommend that standards of accreditation across countries should be harmonised and mutual recognition of standards for proficiency testing and external quality assessment should be facilitated. Minimum standards for professional competence need to be identified and formal training should be developed and encouraged. As genetic testing is taking place internationally, the report recommends greater access to national and international networks testing for rare diseases. In addition, the ways in which countries measure the clinical validity and utility of genetic tests need to be explored if tests are to cross national borders. However, the transportation of samples across borders raising security and privacy issues and these should be considered at an international level. The report does recognise the need to balance the needs of privacy for individuals with the needs of the public, such as equal access to genetic tests, the ability of researchers to conduct public health research and the ability to exchange information for medical care. They suggest that international guidelines are needed to address the long-term storage of samples for medical care and privacy and security issues, especially for samples crossing borders.
Countries surveyed were: Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States.