MCC always make earnest efforts to comply with the International Standard-ISO 15189: 2012 and NABL 112 to ensure that its standard of service is of global equivalence. Accordingly, the laboratory has the following objectives:

• To observe good clinical laboratory practices in the Pre-examination, Examination and Post examination part of testing and sample processing
• To provide accurate, precise and reliable test results at the committed possible turnaround time
• To adhere to the guidelines in the quality manual, quality system procedures and work instructions of the laboratory, while performing the duties and responsibilities.
• To get the Lab. management committed to provide the required resources, support and cooperation so as to achieve the projected accuracy, precision and turnaround time
   

A) Molecular Testing
Transplant Associated Infections:

• CMV Quantitative Real time PCR
• EBV Quantitative Real Time PCR
• BK Quantitative Real time PCR

HIV and Hepatitis:

• HIV Quantitative Real-time PCR and GeneXpert
• HCV Quantitative Real-time PCR and GeneXpert
• HBV Quantitative Real-time PCR

Infectious Diseases:

• COVID – 19 testing – Real-time PCR and GeneXpert
• Drug – resistance – Real-time PCR.
• Antibiotic resistance genes Gradient Thermal PCR.
• Tuberculosis - GeneXpert MTB/RIF

B) Conventional culture for anaerobic bacteria
Conventional culture for anaerobic bacteria from clinical specimen other than blood is carried out on the most appropriate media in controlled environment.
C) Microbial Identification and Sensitivity testing

• Rapid Microbial Identification – MALDI-TOF
• Blood Culture and sensitivity - BACTEC 9050 and BacT/ALERT 3D.
• Automated Microbial identification and susceptibility testing – VITEK 2-  compact

D) Serology

•  Clostridium difficile toxin a & b  -  ELISA
•  Serum galactomannan assay - ELISA
•  Widal test
•  ASO - Anti streptolysin O Titre
• CRP - C-reactive protein
• RA - Rheumatoid factor
• RPR – Rapid Plasma Reagin

Quality control (Q.C.) and quality assurance (Q.A)

• Quality control (Q.C.) and quality assurance (Q.A) are strictly implemented and usually authenticated by the reproducible results from other laboratories.

Teaching & Research

• The division is also involved in teaching (B.Sc MRT  & B.Sc Nursing)
• M.Sc and Ph.d Students research 

Courses Conducted:

The short-term training and preparation for research projects is being provided to students of different Universities and Laboratory technicians of different institutions.
Hospital Infection Control activities:

The division of Microbiology is an active member of the hospital infection control committee (HICC). The division carries out surveillance of hospital-acquired infection (HAI) with the help of the infection control team. Laboratory records are analyzed to determine the rate of infection in various areas of the hospital. Presently the surveillance is passive and is based on the laboratory records of culture-positive cases. Apart from surveillance of HAI, environmental surveillance activities are also carried out which includes air sampling in critical and semi-critical areas. In addition to this, the infection control practices are also routinely monitored by the following activities

• Sterility checks of the new pre-sterilized articles purchased by the hospital or the efficacy of the new disinfectants to be purchased is done when desired by the concerned authority.
• In use test of the disinfectants used in the hospital Monitoring of CSSD
• Surveillance of pathogens.
• Infection control policies in force: disinfection, surveillance, isolation, antibiotic and chemoprophylaxis.
• Continuing medical education (CME) programme held regularly.