The Accreditation Committee of the College of American Pathologists has awarded accreditation to Athena Esoterix, LLC based on a recent on-site inspection as part of the CAP's Accreditation Programs.
The facility's medical director, Sanford Sharp, MD, was advised of this national recognition and congratulated for the excellence of the services provided by the laboratory and its staff. Athena Esoterix is now one of more than 8,000 CAP-accredited facilities worldwide.
The U.S. federal government recognizes the CAP Laboratory Accreditation Program, begun in the early 1960s, as being equal to or more stringent than the government's inspection program. During the CAP accreditation process, designed to ensure the highest standard of care for all laboratory patients, inspectors examine the laboratory's records and quality control of procedures for the preceding two years. CAP inspectors also examine laboratory staff qualifications, equipment, facilities, safety program, documents, and overall management.
"Being CAP-accredited demonstrates our commitment to excellence and upholding the most stringent clinical laboratory testing standards in molecular diagnostics and Next Generation Sequencing," said Elizabeth Forrester, Ph.D., MB(ASCP)CM, co-founder, and technical director. "To be recognized for our work by the world's largest organization of board-certified pathologists serves as confirmation that we're not only serving our community and advancing our field, but we're doing it the right way, to the highest of standards."
Co-founder and laboratory manager Dawn Richards, Ph.D., added, "We’re proud to be recognized by a group of peers who share our high standards for best practices in the rapidly evolving field of infectious disease diagnosis. Our desire to provide the region with access to advanced molecular diagnostics and Next Generation Sequencing aligns with the CAP goal to improve people's health through excellence in the practice of laboratory medicine. The validation conferred by this recognition strengthens Athena's position to help our community through precision medicine.”