Laboratory Quality Stepwise Implementation tool

Title

Develop an appropriate, documented induction program for new personnel

Why

In the quality management system the method for assuring that procedures are only performed by competent staff is by authorizing specific staff members to perform the procedure. In phase 1 an general Authorization Matrix was made that shows which positions are authorized to perform specific tasks. Before new staff can be authorized to perform a specific procedure they need to be introduced to this procedure and the laboratory needs to be sure that the staff member is competent to correctly perform this procedure.

Background information on hiring personnel from the WHO Laboratory Quality Management System (LQMS) handbook is provided in the right-hand column.

What

Develop a standardized induction program and document this in an SOP. The goals of the induction program are:

To familiarize the new staff member with the laboratory rules
To train the staff member what to do in specific situations such as an emergency
To familiarize the new staff member with the procedures that are relevant for his/her position

The advantages of having a standardized induction program for the laboratory itself are:

It can be verified if the staff member has correctly and completely been familiarized with the laboratory
The laboratory can assure that the staff member is competent to perform procedures

How & who

Laboratory Manager:

Make a selection of topics/elements new staff members must be familiarized with. You can use the template induction checklist provided in the right-hand column and adapt it to your own situation.
Write an SOP entitled Induction of New Personnel according to the protocol for writing a Procedure SOP in the Master SOP and use the template for a Procedure SOP attached to the Master SOP.
Include a checklist as appendix for use during induction of new staff to track and ensure that the staff member has completely followed the induction program.
Review and authorize the SOP according to the procedures in the SOP for Document Control and include the SOP in the Read and Understand List and indicate which staff members have to read the SOP.
Present the new procedure to laboratory staff during a weekly staff meeting and indicate which staff members have to read the SOP and explain that they have to sign the Read and Understand List after reading.
When a new staff member is welcomed, complete the induction program according to the SOP and tick-off the checklist.
When completed, sign and date the induction checklist and store it in the personnel file of the new staff member (this is also developed in phase 2).

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This activity belongs to the QSE Personnel