DQASS
is a statistical support service for NHS Down's syndrome, Edwards’ syndrome and Patau’s syndrome screening laboratories nationwide, and is part of the . The overall aim is to monitor and support the quality and effectiveness of prenatal screening in England to ensure all pregnant women have access to a screening programme that is uniform, equitable and adheres to national guidance.
We have held the contract for DQASS at the ¶¶Òõ¶ÌÊÓÆµ since its inception in 2006. Annually we analyse approximately 500,000 records from 22 laboratories/laboratory networks and around 200 ultrasound units covering almost 3,000 individual sonographers.
We provide an independent audit of laboratory and ultrasound nuchal translucency data in a standardised and statistically valid way. The statistical analyses monitor the screening process at various levels; from the overall standardised screen positive rate at the top level all the way through to specific adjustments for ethnicity, smoking and other factors applied to individual biomarkers.