Meeting Minutes

"Economics of Point of Care Testing
for Cardiac Markers and BNP” and
“Meeting Regulatory Requirements at the POC”

Wednesday, April 5^th, 2006
United States Army Transportation School
Ft. Eustis, VA.  23604

The Va. POCC Spring Meeting was held at the Ft. Eustis Army Transportation Building, just east of Williamsburg.  The meeting officially kicked off at 10:15 with President Lou Ann Wyer welcoming everyone for traveling and attending.  Fifty attendees were

present for this meeting. The Board members were introduced. The meeting committee members and the vendors were especially noted for their time, efforts, and contributions into making the occasion a success (MAS, Roche, Biosite and Radiometeramerica).  Lou Ann noted that the Va. POCC was now FIVE years old. 

Secretary John LaRosa gave a brief summary of the fall 2005 meeting for those that could not attend.  The major business at that meeting was the approval of the bylaws.

Lou Ann continued with the business portion of the meeting by stating that the President-Elect position is the only Board position open for fall elections, with the term beginning Jan. 2007.  Nomination papers were available at all the tables for members to start the election process for the upcoming open position. Nominees that approve their name being submitted will be placed on the ballot to be released prior to the Fall 2006 meeting, with the final votes being able to be cast at the meeting.  The new President-Elect will be announced once all ballots are counted.

The dues process was explained next.  There are 39 paid members. The cost difference between members and non-members attending two annual meetings was reviewed. 

Planning the Fall 2006 meeting was discussed next.  The VA. CLMA chapters are having their state meeting 11/15/06 in Williamsburg.  Discussion was held if the Va. POCC wanted to piggy-back onto that meeting, either on the eve of that meeting or the next day. General consensus was that it shouldn’t be a problem, even if a different site was chosen. Lou Ann will start looking for a meeting site, and begin forming that committee to plan the meeting.

Sgt. Curry of the Ft. Eustis hospital lab (POCC) was introduced next, and gave a presentation of their facilities, both on and off site.  She generously offered to give a tour of their lab after the meeting.

The first educational session of the day was entitled Economic Impact of POC Testing

For BNP and Cardiac Markers.   This was a very interesting and enlightening presentation by Dr. Ken Blick of the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. Dr. Blick touched upon his laboratory facilities, both prior- to and post-automation, and how the introduction of point of care BNP and cardiac markers in the ER improved both turn-around-times and patient outcomes where rapid decision making was necessary.  A Question and Answer session followed, and Dr. Blick was available most of the rest of the day for additional conversation.

A great lunch of sandwiches, pastries, salad, bread, and cookies was had by all.  It was catered by the Panera Bread Co and sponsored by Biosite.  This was a good opportunity for all to network and meet with the vendor representatives.

The afternoon educational sessions began with Meeting Regulatory Requirements at  the POC, presented by Alan Beder of Radiometer.  Alan gave a very informative session that included preanalytical errors in blood gas testing, an update on e-QC regulations that included forthcoming regulations by CMS, current CMS status with regards to POCT, and a brief overview of analysis hazards. Alan also provided educational respiratory posters to everyone, and was available for Questions and Answers.

Jane Perry of UVA wrapped up the afternoon with a presentation on Preventing Sharps Injuries in POCT, with an emphasis on sharps handling, injuries, and statistics.  Her talk included the epidemiology of sharps injuries, progress in the prevention of such occurrences, and sharps safety in POCT.  A Question and Answer session followed.

The meeting concluded with Lou Ann again thanking all the speakers and vendors for their support.  Attendees were reminded to fill out the evaluations on the tables, and certificates of attendance are also available on the back table.  Any ideas for future meeting sites and topics should be forwarded to any of the board members.  Nomination papers can also be filled out for the President-Elect position and turned in at the end of the meeting. Sgt. Curry offered a tour of the Ft. Eustis laboratory for anyone that did not have to immediately depart.

Evaluations:

    Economics of POCT             Meeting Regulatory Requirements              Sharps Injuries

        (Ken Blick)                                     (Alan Beder)                                       (Jane Perry)

Score

5:            13                                               9                                                           5