Try a New Control

Another bad habit is to test a different vial of control and repeat the testing until it falls within an acceptable range. Although a bad vial of control material is unlikely, it can occur. For example, controls are not properly reconstituted, are stored improperly, are used beyond their expiration date, and so on. Training can address these issues. Cost is another issue. A new vial of control material is usually much less expensive than repeating a patient run.

As Ms. Quam concludes, "Automatically repeating controls or blaming the control itself are often attempts to resolve the problem without the hassle and time delay necessary in finding and eliminating the true cause of the QC failure. These practices have become habit because they are easy and we often do not have or do not teach the skills necessary to resolve the problem using a more systematic approach."