Assessment Tool For Laboratories Implementing COVID-19 Virus Testing

Assessment tool for laboratories implementing COVID-19
virus testing
Interim guidance
8 April 2020
Background
This tool has been designed to assess the capacity of laboratories that have implemented or intend to implement testing
for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The tool is a shortened version of
the 2012 Laboratory assessment tool that is widely used to assess national laboratory systems and the capacity of
laboratories.
The new tool incorporates core sections of the 2012 tool, while adding a section specifically on testing for COVID-19
virus. Overall, the new tool enables rapid identification of strengths and weaknesses of a laboratory to determine the
capacity for COVID-19 testing.
Please read this user guide before filling in the questionnaire. For additional information, a more complete version of
this user guide can be found in the 2012 Laboratory assessment tool.
Assessment tool for laboratories implementing COVID-19 virus testing

The questionnaire is presented in an Excel spreadsheet using automatic calculations. There are no macros, so that the
questionnaire can be used on any computer, independent of the operating system. The file includes 19 tabs with questions
in English.
To switch from English to French or Spanish, select the “Language” tab, toggle the cell number A3 from 1 (English) to
2 (French) or 3 (Spanish). The tool is currently not available in other languages but, if translated, text in the other
languages can be entered into the additional columns in the “Language” tab and by choosing the appropriate column
number in cell A3.
To start the assessment, go to the “Lab” tab and fill in all the requested cells in column B. Then fill in all the requested
cells (columns D and E) of the 11 specific module tabs and the gap analysis module. Questions in tabs 1 to 10 of the
tool are intended to facilitate the assessment of core capacities of the laboratory and may include but are not limited to
COVID-19 testing. The questions in tab 11 address specificities related to COVID-19 virus testing.
For most of the questions, clicking the small arrow on the righthand side of the answer cells (generally in column D)
opens a box with the following authorized values: 1. Yes; 2. Partial; 3. No; 4. Not applicable. An error message will
appear when trying to enter values other than those listed in the dropdown menu.
Other values can be entered (generally in column E) when asking “Number of equipment”, “Number of tests performed”,
“Please describe”, etc. A cross in column C indicates that documents are required for completing the answer. Additional
information can be given in column E or in the comment box at the bottom of each module. When no answer is expected
in column D (in the case of an open question for instance), the corresponding cell in column D is crossed out. All answers
in grey or light blue colour cells in Column D will be taken into account to calculate the capacities indicators.
Please do not try to modify or rename the tabs as these are protected and such changes may result in calculation errors
or compromise interpretation of the data.
Use the “Summary” tab to visualize the average indicator for the laboratory core capacities and the indicator for COVID-
19 testing capacity and capability. The indicators and graphics, automatically generated will direct the assessors and
decision makers towards the capacities that may require immediate attention and strengthening. You may add
photographs, additional comments and conclusions in the dedicated text boxes as needed.
-1-
Assessment tool for laboratories implementing COVID-19 virus testing: Interim guidance
WHO continues to monitor the situation closely for any changes that may affect this interim guidance. Should any factors change,
WHO will issue a further update. Otherwise, this interim guidance document will expire 2 years after the date of publication.
© World Health Organization 2020. Some rights reserved. This work is available under the CC BY-NC-SA
3.0 IGO licence.
WHO reference number: WHO/2019-nCoV/Lab_Assessment_Tool/2020.1
-2-

Assessment Tool For Laboratories Implementing COVID-19 Virus Testing

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Assessment Tool For Laboratories Implementing COVID-19 Virus Testing

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Assessment Tool For Laboratories Implementing COVID-19 Virus Testing

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Assessment tool for laboratories implementing COVID-19

Assessment tool for laboratories implementing COVID-19 virus testing

WHO reference number: WHO/2019-nCoV/Lab_Assessment_Tool/2020.1

You might also like