Fri Jul 25 19:19:36 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a summary of the text and a rewrite as a news article:

**Summary:**

Tamil Nadu has established a new External Quality Assurance Laboratory (DPH-EQAS) at the State Public Health Laboratory to ensure the quality of tests conducted at government labs across the state. This initiative, costing ₹1.13 crore, aims to provide free quality checks for 2,177 PHCs, 300 government hospitals, and 36 medical college hospitals. A pilot program is underway in Tiruvallur and Chengalpattu districts. The move will save the state ₹52 crore annually, previously spent on external checks at CMC Vellore. A mobile app has been launched for uploading results. The project aims for ISO 17043 accreditation and plans to extend the program to all government labs in Tamil Nadu by January 2026.

**News Article:**

**Tamil Nadu Boosts Lab Quality with New Assurance Program**

CHENNAI, July 26, 2025 – Tamil Nadu has launched a comprehensive program to enhance the quality of testing in its government laboratories, establishing a state-of-the-art External Quality Assurance Laboratory (DPH-EQAS) at the State Public Health Laboratory (SPHL).

The ₹1.13 crore initiative aims to standardize and improve the accuracy of tests conducted at 2,177 Primary Health Centres (PHCs), 300 government hospitals, and 36 medical college hospitals across the state, offering these quality checks free of charge to participating government facilities.

Health Minister Ma. Subramanian inaugurated the DPH-EQAS laboratory and launched a pilot program in Tiruvallur and Chengalpattu districts. A mobile application has also been developed, enabling labs to easily upload and share their results.

“This is a significant step towards ensuring the highest standards of healthcare in Tamil Nadu,” said Minister Subramanian at the launch. “Accurate and reliable testing is crucial for effective diagnosis, treatment, and disease prevention.”

Currently, government labs rely on external quality checks from institutions like Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore, at an annual cost of ₹52 crore. The new DPH-EQAS laboratory will eliminate this expenditure and provide a more accessible and efficient quality assurance system.

According to an official release, laboratory services are essential for the diagnosis of diseases, surveillance, and to initiate preventive and control measures. Currently, the Integrated Essential Laboratory Services (IELS) being implemented has further strengthened the scope and services in the State. Under IELS, samples are being referred from spoke labs to hub labs for various investigations. So, patients need not travel unnecessarily, and it reduces the out of pocket expenditure as well. So far, laboratories under DPH and other health institutions were sending samples for external quality checks to Christian Medical College, Vellore for an annual expenditure of ₹52 crore. Based on the participation of EQAS programme and other parameters, 1,622 PHC labs in Tamil Nadu are NABL certified under MELT programme. From now on, the SPHL can conduct the quality checks.

The National Health Mission, Tamil Nadu, provided ₹90 lakh for the procurement of laboratory equipment.

Following the successful completion of the pilot project, the DPH-EQAS laboratory will seek ISO 17043 accreditation from the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL). The program is expected to be fully implemented across all government laboratories in Tamil Nadu by January 2026.

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