Mycology quality assessment: United Kingdom national scheme.

A mycology quality assessment scheme introduced in 1986 was assessed: 289 laboratories participated in the scheme, and six distributions, each containing four specimens, were made. Levels of performance varied considerably among participating laboratories: performance was highest with the commoner organisms distributed, but some laboratories, encouragingly, achieved a consistently high level of species identification. A questionnaire distributed to participants showed that a wide range of methods are commonly used, some of which are contrary to good practice. As the scheme continues, selection of organisms considered to be relevant and of use to participants will become difficult.