College of American Pathologists

College of American Pathologists

The College of American Pathologists ("CAP"), is a medical society serving more than 17,000 physician members and the laboratory community throughout the world.

It is the world’s largest association composed exclusively of pathologists certified by the American Board of Pathology[1], and is widely considered the leader in laboratory quality assurance. The College is an advocate for high-quality and cost-effective medical care. It is also affiliated with the American Medical Association (AMA).[2] CAP does accreditation of laboratories under deemed authority by CMS (Medicare). It also offers an accreditation service to help laboratories earn accreditation under ISO 15189 Medical Laboratories. In November 2008, Piedmont Medical Laboratory of Winchester, Virginia became the first laboratory in the United States [3] to be officially accredited under ISO 15189.

Pathologists play an integral role in the primary health care team. They are physicians who obtain and interpret data as the result of examination of tissues, blood, and other body fluids for diagnosis and patient care. CAP members are involved in a broad range of disciplines, including surgical pathology, cytopathology, dermatopathology, neuropathology, forensic pathology, blood banking/ transfusion medicine, clinical chemistry, microbiology, immunopathology, hematology, genetics, and molecular pathology.

As of October 10, 2009, the current president of the CAP is Stephen N. Bauer, MD, FCAP.


See also

References

  1. ^ American Board of Pathology
  2. ^ American Medical Association
  3. ^ first ISO-15189 accredited laboratory in the United States

External links

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