Quality
Since its inception, the CRYOSTEM project has been placed in the framework of a quality approach respecting all the international standards from the management of its collection of biological resources to its governance.
THE BEST OF STANDARDS: ISO 9001 AT THE HEART OF THE COHORT’S SUCCESS
The network governance decided to commit, in early 2014, towards a quality approach with the goal of ISO 9001 certification. ISO 9001 norm defines the requirements to meet quality management system (QMS), customer needs and satisfaction, processes control and continuous improvement. Benefits of ISO 9001 certification in a large multi-center cohort such as CRYOSTEM are felt mainly at two levels:
- Organizational level : structuring in processes, leading to more relevant identification of dysfunctions, facilitation of management toward transparent communication, monitoring of activity and efficacy through pertinent indicators.
- Strategic level : collection quality, partners’ commitment and focus on user expectations and satisfaction, international visibility.
Governance ISO 9001 certification was successfully obtained in February 2015, barely one year after QMS establishment. This certification clearly plays a role in the network success and cohesion. Since 2015, CRYOSTEM governance has set up indicators, adapted to each process, to evaluate precisely its activities. Moreover, in order to monitor and analyze network transplant units and BRC activities, CRYOSTEM financed internal auditors training in October 2015.
Since then, CRYOSTEM’s governance has successfully renewed its ISO 9001 certification year after year, always improving its internal functioning.
A quality system familiar with international standards for collection management
Annual controls were set up in order to check the homogeneity and the quality of samples processed and stored in the BRC in the CRYOSTEM network.
Several parameters are assessed :
- recovery rate and cellular viability on cells in DMSO after thawing,
- DNA purity on packed leukocytes, reflected by measurement of absorption ratio at 260 and 280 nm.
Our quality objectives are to reach bibliographic values of reference : cell viability value at a minimum of 90% and 50% cell recovery after thawing cells in DMSO and an absorption ratio 260/280 between 1,8 and 2 for DNA purity.
Assessment of samples
Cells in DMSO
Comparison of cell recovery and viability after thawing and washing according to the year of treatment of samples.
Dried pellets
Comparison of DNA purity according the year of treatment of samples.
Sampling : from 2012 to 2019, 161 samples have been collected from 20 CRB (cells in DMSO and dried pellets).