Addressing issues associated with the development and management of PT programs and with their optimum use

Over 200 participants from 54 countries took part in working group (WG) discussions on proficiency testing (PT) held in conjunction with the Global Odyssey 2002 conference on 24–26 February, 2002 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Each WG addressed a series of questions focusing on the role of PT in laboratory quality management (WG1), alternatives to traditional PT (WG2), international aspects of PT programs (WG3), quality management of PT programs (WG4), how to assess laboratory performance (WG5), and developing and funding PT for resource-limited countries and regions (WG6). Each large WG was further subdivided into smaller groups to allow maximum participation, which was one objective of the WGs. Some subgroups addressed the same questions, but in most cases they drew very similar conclusions. Individual participants were surprised to discover the truly global nature of some problems with PT, while at the same time how specific differences among countries or regions can either enhance or hinder opportunities to implement PT programs.