The key role of water quality in laboratory performance

In the fast-paced hospital environment, doctors and laboratory technicians expect their technology and systems to operate reliably every time. Clinical laboratories are crucial in providing doctors with the information needed to make patient treatment decisions - and the consequences of inaccurate results or laboratory failures may determine whether patients can receive life-saving treatment in a timely manner or face the risk of misdiagnosis or delayed treatment.

Regular inspection and maintenance of laboratory diagnostic equipment are important, but water systems are often only taken seriously when malfunctions occur. If the water quality does not meet the standard, laboratory testing may produce incorrect results, data deviations, and even worse, the analyzer may stop running. Once this situation occurs, the time required to repair the water system and retest the samples can lead to backlog, causing serious problems in environments where efficient operation is necessary.

Laboratory water quality maintenance

The purity of clinical laboratory water is crucial. Although ordinary household users consider tap water to be "pure", clinical laboratory scientists believe that tap water is severely polluted and not suitable for their application.

As diagnostic tests become increasingly complex and sensitive, water purity standards have become more important. Almost every stage of operation of automated clinical analyzers requires high-purity water, therefore, it is necessary to ensure low levels of particulate matter, ions, organic matter, and bacterial impurities in the water to ensure 1:

• The accumulation of bacteria in the internal storage repository is extremely low

• During the cleaning process of colorimetric dishes and sample probes, there is minimal residue and contamination

• Improved stability of reagents

• Higher accuracy and precision when transferring samples and reagents

• Higher accuracy of photometric readings

Due to the direct or indirect impact of these impurities on the performance of the analyzer, water used in clinical laboratory applications must comply with various standards, especially those established by CLSI (Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute).

Reduce downtime to a minimum through proactive maintenance

Like any other machine or equipment, water purification systems also require regular maintenance to ensure their continuous and efficient operation. This includes regular replacement of filter cartridges, replacement of vulnerable parts, disinfection, and software updates. In addition, system performance data needs to be recorded for trend analysis and used for process validation by certification bodies. However, for a long time, water system maintenance plans have often been overlooked. In the past, many hospitals delegated maintenance work to internal staff after installing water systems. In many cases, internal employees who are not experts in water systems or are busy with work and lack appropriate training or monitoring maintenance frequency can increase the risk of system downtime.

To minimize downtime, the water supply system should be regularly maintained by qualified water supply technicians. Developing a proactive maintenance plan and having qualified repair technicians provide services can help ensure that the water supply system does not malfunction in environments that require round the clock operation.

Maximizing efficiency through reliable water resource management

Nowadays, hospitals can choose to outsource their water purification needs to water management partners. In this way, hospitals can ensure the required water quality, quantity, and normal operating time without investing internal resources. Through these services, third-party experts in the field of water purification regularly (sometimes remotely) monitor the water system and perform preventive maintenance and repairs to ensure that the system is always in operation. These services typically include process assurance (promising "quality" and "quantity"), and cover system replacement parts and labor costs without any additional fees.

When comparing the total cost of ownership for obtaining the required quality and quantity of purified water for the laboratory, this approach is usually more economical than managing system maintenance and repair separately or bearing downtime losses. In some cases, water purification equipment can even be obtained for free, allowing laboratories to obtain the required water quality at a cost of "per gallon" and utilize their operating budget without the need to apply for new special funds for water purification equipment.

Given the criticality of clinical laboratory testing in hospitals and increasingly stringent water quality requirements, it is more important than ever for hospitals to have a reliable water supply system. By monitoring and maintaining the water supply system through third-party suppliers, the overall cost of ownership can be reduced. Hospital staff can devote more time and energy to core work, and most importantly, focus on patient care because they know that water demand is being met.

reference resources:

Author: Jeffrey Holland, Bachelor of Science, Master of Business Administration, Director of Health Sciences, Evoqua Water Technologies

1 ELGA LabWater， Guidelines for Pure Clinical Laboratory Water (Clinical Laboratory Water, 2006)