Laboratory Accreditation

Aims | Accreditation Modules | Requirements | Registration | Process | FAQ  | Accredited Laboratories

Aims

Why would you benefit from receiving EAE Laboratory Accreditation?

• The aim of the EAE Laboratory Accreditation process is to raise quality standards of practice and equipment across Europe in a uniform manner. It is also designed to be used as an educational tool to improve the overall quality of the laboratories.
• The EAE Laboratory Accreditation process also serves as a precaution to staff working in echo laboratories from making an incorrect diagnosis and to protect patients from being given the wrong treatment. There is also a political arm to help departments negotiate purchases and upgrades of equipment with their local health authority.
• What this process does not provide is a legal framework for practice but represents a voluntary process of standards that must function within national and local regulations. It is designed to apply to all ESC Member Countries whathever their model of provision of echocardiography.

Accreditation Modules

Three modules are available:

• Transthoracic Echocardiography (TTE)
• Transesophageal Echocardiogragphy (TEE)
• Stress Echo

For each module, two levels are available:

• standard accreditation: set to provide basic laboratory standards for an optimal clinical service
• advanced accreditation: set to establish a fewer number of advanced laboratories in each country, whereby in addition to standard criteria, they may be providing extensive teaching and research, and cover all modules.

Detailed criteria are available

Requirements

 Eligibility rules

To be eligible, echocardiography laboratories should meet the following requirements:

• Be based in an ESC member country (see list)
• Be established for at least 3 years
• Have at least the head, lead or a senior member of the laboratory holding an EAE or mutually recognised individual certification in the modules applied for (except for stress echo) preferably at the time of applying or for a limited period of time and at the latest within 2 years after being temporarily granted laboratory accreditation (refer to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Guide for more details)
• There is no restriction in the type of centres (private, university laboratories): all centres can apply
  
  NEW! Laboratories from India can now apply to the EAE Laboratory accreditation programme, following the same rules as the ESC Member countries.

Language of submission

Module documentation should be completed in English while additional documents required (such as patient information leaflets, standard procedure documents...) can be submitted in local language. This is providing that there is at least one National Society Reviewer for the laboratory’s country involved in the EAE Laboratory Accreditation process (refer to list below which will be updated on a regulary basis). Other ESC member countries should submit all documentation in English.

Countries with nominated reviewers for EAE Laboratory Accreditation
Italy	Armenia	Portugal
United Kingdom	Serbia	Spain
Lebanon	Ukraine	Finland
Latvia	Lithuania	Israel
Hungary	Belgium (French / Flemish)	Germany
France	Estonia	Denmark

 General rules

• The TTE module is mandatory in order to apply for any other module.
• A laboratory must be successful in TTE to receive accreditation in TEE or Stress Echo
• To be eligible for advanced accreditation in TTE, a laboratory should meet all 3 criteria below:
  - be active in and offer TTE, TEE and Stress Echo
  - apply to all three modules together
  - be eligible for advanced accreditation in TEE and Stress Echo
• The EAE Committee Members may visit any EAE accredited Laboratory to proceed to an on-site verification.

Applying for advanced accreditation does not guarantee being granted this grade.
Your laboratory may receive a standard grade if it does not meet the requirements for advanced accreditation. 

Re-accreditation

The accreditation is valid for 5 years. More information on re-accreditation will be made available in due course on the EAE Website.

For more details, please refer to the FAQ guide 

Registration

Laboratories can apply for 1 to 3 modules, however TTE is mandatory.

	TTE	TEE	Stress Echo
Standard	€500	- €500 each if applications received separately - €250 each if applications are accompanied with another module
Advanced
Module documentation submission deadline	28/02 each year 31/08 each year

In other words:

• Each module is €500 (TTE mandatory, TEE or Stress Echo). Any additional module applied at the same time is €250.
• If subsequent modules are applied for separately, they constitute a separate application and therefore the cost is €500.
• Application fees are payable when enroling to the EAE Laboratory Accreditation process by completing the registration request and are not refundable

Registration is a 2 step process:

• STEP 1: laboratories wishing to apply for EAE Lab Accreditation must complete and send a registration request  to the EAE Accreditation office.
  
  Important: heads of laboratory should nominate a person who will be responsible for filling the forms on the EAE Laboratory online platform. The appointed persons must use their My ESC account user name and password to login on the platform. If you forgot your MyESC account login details, go on ‘Retrieve your Login’ at the bottom left of the My ESC window. If you don't have a My ESC account, you may create one via My ESC.
   
• STEP 2: Within two weeks, the EAE Accreditation Office will respond with confirmation of your registration along with access details to access to the EAE Laboratory Accreditation online platform and user guide.

Process for applications

EAE Laboratory accreditation applications are submitted online only and at anytime.

What happens after laboratories have submitted their application online?

• Once submitted, an application is not editable anymore.  The EAE Accreditation Office is informed automatically.   
• The application is initially reviewed by the EAE Accreditation Office for administrative completion. If the application is incomplete, the laboratory will be contacted and asked to supply missing information within 1 month.
• If your application is complete, it will be sent to the Representative of the relevant National Society for review and recommendations.  This process may take up to 2 months.
• In case some information is missing, you will be contacted by the EAE Accreditation Office and asked to supply relevant information within 1 month.
• After review by the National Society, the EAE Laboratory Accreditation Sub-Committee will review all applications and recommendations of the National Societies.  The final decisions process may take up to 2 months, unless further information is requested.
• Upon completion of the review process, laboratories will be informed by email of the results of their application by the EAE Accreditation Office (within two weeks).  An EAE Laboratory Accreditation Diploma will be awared to successful institutions.

Accredited Laboratories

We are pleased to announce that the following laboratories have successfully passed the Laboratory Accreditation.

Country	Laboratories	Modules/grade	Valid until
NEW! Belgium	The Echocardiography Laboratory, Cardiovascular Center Aalst, Belgium	TTE - TEE - SE	November 2015
NEW! Bulgaria	University National Heart Hospital Department of Noninvasive Functional Diagnostic and Imaging Sofia , Bulgaria	TTE - TEE - SE	November 2016
NEW! Italy	Laboratorio Di Ecocardiografia Adulti Fondazione Toscana "G.Monasterio" - Ospedale Del Cuore, Massa, Italy	TTE - TEE - SE	August 2016
NEW! Turkey	Ekokardiografi Laboratuarı - Amerikan Hastanesi İstanbul, Turkey	TTE - TEE	November 2015
NEW! Romania	Laboratório de Ecocardiografia-Hospital da Luz, Lisboa, Portugal	TTE - TEE - SE	July 2016
NEW! Portugal	Hospital da Luz - Echocardiography laboratory - Lisbon	TTE - TEE - SE Standard	January 2016
Belgium	Echocardiography Unit - AZ Maria Middelares Gent	TTE - TEE - SE Advanced	November 2015
Spain	Unidad de Imagen Cardíaca Hospital La Paz	TTE - TEE - SE Advanced	November 2015
Georgia	Echocardiography Laboratory of Adult Cardiology Department of the JO ANN Medical Center, Tbilisi	TTE - TEE - SE Standard	November 2015
Germany	Echolabor Cardiovascular Imaging,  2.Med.Klinik, Universitätsmedizin Mainz	TTE - TEE - SE Standard	November 2015
Belgium	Echocardiography Laboratory Department of Cardiovascular Diseases University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Leuven	TTE - TEE - SE Advanced	November 2015
Turkey	Ekokardiografi Laboratuarı - Amerikan Hastanesi İstanbul (P)	TTE - TEE Standard	November 2015
Belgium	The Echocardiography Laboratory, Cardiovascular Center Aalst	TTE - TEE - SE Standard	November 2015
Romania	Laboratory of Echocardiography, Emergency Clinical Hospital of Bucharest	TTE - TEE  Standard	August 2015
Spain	Unidad de Imagen - Cardiovascular. ICV. Hosptial Clinico San Carlos, Madrid	TTE - TEE - SE Advanced	November 2014
Italy	Echo Lab, Department of Cardiopulmonary Sciences, University Hospital 'S Maria della Misericordia', Udine	TTE - TEE - SE Advanced	September 2014
Germany	Echokardiographie-Labore des Universitätsklinikums, Leipzig	TTE - TEE - SE Standard	June 2014
Romania	"Carol Davila" University, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Bucharest	TTE - TEE Standard	March 2014
France	Laboratoire d'échographie cardiaque, Clinique Saint-Augustin, Bordeaux	TTE - SE Standard	March 2014
Greece	Echocardiology Department - Onassis Cardiac Surgery Center, Athens	TTE - TEE - SE Standard	January 2014
Denmark	Echocardiography Laboratory, Heart Centre, Copenhagen University Hospital  Rigshospitalet (P)	TTE - TEE Standard	June 2011

P = Provisional, pending staff member achieving individual accreditation.


Frequently asked questions 
For any information, please contact us

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