The American Industrial Hygiene Association's AIHA Proficiency Analytical Testing (PAT) Programs recently achieved ISO/IEC 17043:2010 Proficiency Testing (PT) provider accreditation from the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA). The scope of this accreditation in industrial hygiene (IHPAT) and environmental lead (ELPAT) continues through April 2017.

“This is the culmination of a lot of hard work and time by AIHA PAT Programs staff and the PAT Programs Board,” said Derek Popp, chair of the AIHA PAT Programs Board. “We began the process in September of 2011 and we undertook ISO accreditation so that we would not only be able to market our proficiency programs in other countries but also give us an opportunity to expand what we currently offer for proficiency samples to laboratories in the US and abroad, through collaboration with other PT providers and other laboratory accrediting bodies.” 

Popp added, “Having this accreditation elevates the stature of our proficiency programs and will be a benefit to AIHA PAT Programs as they continue to reach out and support international efforts to promote worker safety.”

“We have operated our PAT Programs for more than 25 years,” said Mary Ann Latko, CAE, CIH, CSP, QEP, managing director of AIHA PAT Programs.  “We are very pleased to have been granted accreditation.  We knew we had strong, stable and reliable programs.  Now we have the third party acknowledgement of our programs' quality.”

A2LA’s Accreditation Program for Providers of PT is designed for PT providers who wish to demonstrate their competence by formal compliance with a set of internationally-acceptable requirements for the planning and implementation of PT programs.

The AIHA Proficiency Analytical Testing Programs have been providing participant organizations with the opportunity to improve and refine the analytical skills of their staff, while testing new procedures or training different analysts for more than 25 years. These programs, which are open to any interested participants, allow organizations' employees to demonstrate their ability to correctly analyze samples in the workplace and the environment. For more information, go to www.aihapat.org.