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International Committee (international + committee)
Selected AbstractsEQAS for peripheral blood morphology in Spain: a 6-year experienceINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LABORATORY HEMATOLOGY, Issue 6 2008G. GUTIÉRREZ Summary The Spanish haematology external quality assessment scheme (EQAS), established in 1984, is run by the Spanish Haematology and Haemotherapy Association (AEHH) [Quality Assurance in Health Care 3 (1991) 75] and functions to evaluate the quality and reproducibility of the assessment of diagnostic samples by clinical laboratories. The Hospital Clinic of the University of Barcelona (HCB) serves as the EQAS Coordination Centre and follows the guidelines established by the International Committee for Standardization in Haematology [Annali dell'Istituto superiore di Sanità 31 (1995) 95; International Journal of Hematology 68 (1998) 45]. During the period 2001,2006, replicates of 25 different blood films were sent to 604 EQAS participants for cell morphology evaluation. Some patient details corresponding to the samples were disclosed, such us age, sex, haemoglobin value and white blood cell count. The participants were asked to select up to four significant morphology features using a coding list, provided by the Coordination Centre, which included significant morphological alterations that appear in haematopoietic cells. For each survey, individual results were assessed against the morphological reference results (MRR) established by the Cytology Group of the AEHH (,true' answers). This paper describes the organization of the 6-year-long study and the evaluation of laboratory performance for blood smear interpretation by the Spanish haematology EQAS. Different performance levels were detected relative to the laboratory category. Laboratories providing services to hospitalized patients showed higher performances compared with laboratories providing services to nonhospitalized patients. Pathological lymphoid cells were the most difficult to identify by the participants. To improve the results in EQAS peripheral blood morphology, the development of specific cytology educational trainings is discussed. [source] Assessment of registration quality of trials sponsored by ChinaJOURNAL OF EVIDENCE BASED MEDICINE, Issue 1 2009Xuemei Liu Abstract Objective To evaluate the quality of the registration information for trials sponsored by China registered in the WHO primary registries or other registries that meet the requirements of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). Methods We assessed the registration information for trials registered in the 9 WHO primary registries and one other registry that met the requirements of ICJME as of 15 October 2008. We analyzed the trial registration data set in each registry and assessed the registration quality against the WHO Trial Registration Data Set (TRDS). We also evaluated the quality of the information in the Source(s) of Monetary or Material Support section, using a specially prepared scale. Results The entries in four registries met the 20 items of the WHO TRDS. These were the Chinese Clinical Trial Registration Center (ChiCR), Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (NZCTR), Clinical Trials Registry , India (CTRI), and Sri Lanka Clinical Trials Registry (SLCTR). Registration quality varied among the different registries. For example, using the Scale of TRDS, the NZCTR scored a median of 19 points, ChiCTR (median = 18 points), ISRCTN.org (median = 17 points), and Clinical trials.org (median = 12 points). The data on monetary or material support for ChiCTR and ISRCTN.org were relatively complete and the score on our Scale for the Completeness of Funding Registration Quality ranged from ChiCTR (median = 7 points), ISRCTN.org (median = 6 points), NZCTR (median = 3 points) to clinicaltrials.gov (median = 2 points). Conclusion Further improvements are needed in both the quantity and quality of trial registration. This could be achieved by full completion of the 20 items of the WHO TRDS. Future research should assess ways to ensure the quality and scope of research registration and the role of mandatory registration of funded research. [source] How Europe is portrayed in exhibitionsMUSEUM INTERNATIONAL, Issue 3 2001Jean-Yves Marin Jean-Yves Marin is director of the Museum of Normandy in Caen and president of the International Committee of the Museums of Archaelogy and History of ICOM. With a long international and European experience in the organization of exhibitions, he is also a renowned medievalist and general superintendent of a large number of archaelogical and history exhibitions. In this article, he describes the forces behind the growth in the European public's desire to know their shared past and understand their origins, and the corresponding trend to identify and recognize the intermixing of the peoples of Europe in all their complexity. He believes that this evolution encourages a revision of the concept of the history museum and recommends an example that would integrate objects and work with the historical dimension , including the delicate political aspects of the origins of modern Europe , to enable the creation of a global museographic discourse on European history. [source] Introduction to historic house museumsMUSEUM INTERNATIONAL, Issue 2 2001Giovanni Pinna In November 1997, a major conference entitled Abitare la storia: Le dimore storiche-museo (Inhabiting History: Historical House Museums) was held in Genoa, the city of many palaces. On this occasion, the historic house museum, a rather particular type of museum, was extensively discussed for the very first time. The specific nature and values of such museums were highlighted. Over forty experts, who are responsible for palaces and more modest residences, came to Genoa for the conference. They debated aspects of restoration, security, teaching and communication. The conference participants took the opportunity to express their wish for the International Council of Museums (ICOM) to set up an international committee more specifically dedicated to historic house museums. They asked ICOM Italia, which was also present at the conference, to support their recommendation for the creation of the new committee, and this was done in 1998. Giovanni Pinna is the chairman of this newly created International Committee for Historic House Museums. He is president of the ICOM Italian Committee and also president of the ICOM International Committee for Museology of Historic Sites. A palaeontologist by training, he directed the Museum of Natural History in Milan from 1981 to 1996. He has published some sixty books and articles on various topics in the domain of theoretical museology as well as on the history and functions of museum institutions. His books include Museo: Storia e funzioni di una macchina culturale dal cinquecento a oggi (1980) and Fondamenti terici per un Museo di Storia Naturale (1997). [source] Reinventing the science museum: the Museum of Science and Industry in ManchesterMUSEUM INTERNATIONAL, Issue 4 2000J. Patrick Greene Constant adaptation and renewal are the hallmarks of Manchester's Museum of Science and Industry, as explained by its director, Patrick Greene. He is chairman of the European Museum Forum (organizers of the European Museum of the Year Awards) and president of the Museums Association. He was, until recently, president of ICOM's International Committee of Museums of Science and Technology (CIMUSET). His doctorate is in archaeology, based on research into medieval Norton Priory in Cheshire, the excavation of which he directed from 1971 to 1982. [source] Immune Function Tests for Hazard Identification: A Paradigm Shift in Drug DevelopmentBASIC AND CLINICAL PHARMACOLOGY & TOXICOLOGY, Issue 4 2006Elizabeth R. Gore The purpose of the more stringent approach to immunotoxicology testing was to better identify unintended immunosuppression; however, the requirement was met with much discussion and debate. At the center of the discussion was an attempt to reconcile opposing regulatory directives from agencies outside of Europe that adhere to a more selective, weight-of-evidence approach to functional evaluations. Uncertainty over the predictive value of the recommended immune function tests relative to conventional toxicology parameters prompted an investigation by the International Committee on Harmonization (ICH). The results of a preliminary, industry-wide survey indicated that only a low percentage of pharmaceuticals adversely affect immune function without alterations to standard toxicology parameters. Expected ICH guidelines will ultimately determine to what extent and for what purpose immune function tests will be conducted. In the meantime, optimization of the recommended immune function tests is ongoing. The T-cell dependent antibody response (TDAR) by either conventional Sheep Red Blood Cell (SRBC) plaque assay or by the modified ELISA method using either SRBC or keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) as antigen is being extensively evaluated to determine best practices and procedures for preclinical immunotoxicity evaluations. This review addresses some aspects of the debate concerning the appropriateness of immune function tests for hazard identification, along with recommendations for optimizing TDAR methodology to ensure adequate sensitivity and predictability in risk assessments for immunotoxicity. [source] Reliable and reproducible anterior active rhinomanometry for the assessment of unilateral nasal resistanceCLINICAL OTOLARYNGOLOGY, Issue 6 2000A.S. Carney Unilateral nasal resistance is now thought to be more important than total resistance in promoting obstructive symptoms. We assessed the reproducibility of anterior active rhinomanometry in measuring unilateral nasal resistance. Ten baseline readings of unilateral nasal resistance were made over a 30-min period in seven healthy subjects (14 nostrils) using anterior active rhinomanometry performed according to the International Committee for the Standardization of Rhinomanometry (ICSR) guidelines. Baseline readings revealed that measurements using anterior active rhinomanometry had an unacceptably high coefficient of variation (19%,60%). With a more time-consuming revised protocol involving multiple recordings and the identification and exclusion of erroneous data, coefficients of variation of 7%,15% were obtained. We conclude that single anterior active rhinomanometry readings are potentially prone to large errors and each researcher using such equipment must satisfy his/herself that their methodology has an acceptable coefficient of variation in their hands. The ICSR guidelines are not always sufficient to allow reproducible measurement and specially designed protocols may be necessary to produce reliable results. [source] Introduction to historic house museumsMUSEUM INTERNATIONAL, Issue 2 2001Giovanni Pinna In November 1997, a major conference entitled Abitare la storia: Le dimore storiche-museo (Inhabiting History: Historical House Museums) was held in Genoa, the city of many palaces. On this occasion, the historic house museum, a rather particular type of museum, was extensively discussed for the very first time. The specific nature and values of such museums were highlighted. Over forty experts, who are responsible for palaces and more modest residences, came to Genoa for the conference. They debated aspects of restoration, security, teaching and communication. The conference participants took the opportunity to express their wish for the International Council of Museums (ICOM) to set up an international committee more specifically dedicated to historic house museums. They asked ICOM Italia, which was also present at the conference, to support their recommendation for the creation of the new committee, and this was done in 1998. Giovanni Pinna is the chairman of this newly created International Committee for Historic House Museums. He is president of the ICOM Italian Committee and also president of the ICOM International Committee for Museology of Historic Sites. A palaeontologist by training, he directed the Museum of Natural History in Milan from 1981 to 1996. He has published some sixty books and articles on various topics in the domain of theoretical museology as well as on the history and functions of museum institutions. His books include Museo: Storia e funzioni di una macchina culturale dal cinquecento a oggi (1980) and Fondamenti terici per un Museo di Storia Naturale (1997). [source] Approaches in the safety evaluations of veterinary antimicrobial agents in food to determine the effects on the human intestinal microfloraJOURNAL OF VETERINARY PHARMACOLOGY & THERAPEUTICS, Issue 1 2005C. E. CERNIGLIA The administration of antimicrobial agents to livestock creates potential for antibiotic residues to enter the food supply and be consumed by humans. Therefore, as a process of food animal drug registration, national regulatory agencies and international committees evaluate data regarding the chemical, microbiologic, pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic, pharmacologic, toxicologic, and antimicrobial properties of veterinary drugs to assess the safety of ingested antimicrobial residues to consumers. Currently, European, Australian and United States guidelines for veterinary drug registration require a safety assessment of microbiologic hazards from consumption of antimicrobial residues taking into account the potentially adverse effects on human intestinal microflora. The main concerns addressed are selection of resistant bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract and disruption of the colonization barrier of the resident intestinal microflora. Current requirements differ among national agencies. Efforts are ongoing internationally to review and harmonize approaches and test methods and protocols for application to these microbiologic safety evaluations of antimicrobial drug residues in food. This review describes the background to current regulatory approaches used in applying in vitro and in vivo methods to set a microbiologic acceptable daily intake for residues in food derived from animals treated with an antimicrobial agent. This paper also examines the current research needs to support these evaluations. [source] | ||||||||||