Abstract:

It is the laboratory management’s responsibility to identify and state, in writing, the quality goals of the laboratory. The primary objective of a laboratory’s quality system is to improve and maintain a high level of the precision and accuracy of the laboratory’s “product”. In this context, the laboratory’s product can be defined as “the report issued as the result of the analytical, measurement or testing activity conducted on a sample or samples received from a source”. Management, administrative, statistical, research, preventive and corrective techniques are among those that may be used to maximise the quality of the reported data.
In addition, laboratory management may consider the need to apply suitable measures to ensure that the laboratory environment provides a satisfactory atmosphere to work in. People will be motivated by a positive impression of their surroundings, and will develop in a work environment where they feel comfortable and where no unpleasant surroundings interfere.
To achieve quality in the laboratory work, students should learn and follow the Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) rules. GLP generally refers to a system of management control for laboratories and research organisation to ensure the consistency and reliability of the results, as outlined in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) GLP of Principles and national regulations. GLP is intended to promote the quality and validity of test data. It covers the organisational process and conditions under which non-clinical studies are planned, performed, monitored, recorded and reported.
Teachers will provide students with complete guidelines about the GLP rules on their first day in the laboratory. They will explain the need to follow these rules to ensure and improve the quality of their results. This is expected to facilitate the learning of laboratory matters and should help students to find a job more easily. The guideline comprises several sections: equipment and utensils, materials and products, chemical disinfection and cleanliness products, energy and storage, among others. Certainly not all the rules will be applied in a teaching laboratory. For this reason, the work will especially focus on 15 essential rules, whose fulfilment will be surveyed by teachers.
This study describes the results obtained in several analytical laboratories in the Chemistry Degree at Universitat Jaume I in relation to laboratory work following the GLP rules.

Keywords:

glp rules, guideline, laboratory work, quality assurance.