Lab Training

The Laboratory Improvement Section provides education to Idaho laboratories through cooperation with the National Laboratory Training Network (NLTN) on topics of interest to the laboratory community. The NLTN is a training system sponsored by the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Sentinel laboratory training is also available to those healthcare laboratories participating in the Laboratory Response Network (LRN) for public health emergency preparedness in Idaho.

Certification of Laboratories Analyzing Drinking Water

The Idaho Bureau of Laboratories certifies laboratories for the chemical and microbiological testing of drinking water from public water systems as part of the primacy agreement between the State of Idaho and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Laboratories are certified for microbiology, organic chemistry and inorganic chemistry analytes and methods. A list of laboratories certified by the State of Idaho can be found at the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality website.

Equipment and procedures employed by laboratories certified by the State of Idaho conform to the provisions and QA standards in the "EPA Manual for the Certification of Laboratories Analyzing Drinking Water" and to rules and regulations governing certification of Idaho water quality laboratories. The certification authority for the State of Idaho is Bureau Chief, Richard F. Hudson, PhD.

The Laboratory Improvement Section of the Bureau of Laboratories provides the inspection program for X-ray producing machines.

The Laboratory Improvement Section of the Bureau of Laboratories provides registration and inspection of clinical laboratories. The clinical laboratory inspections are performed as part of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment (CLIA) program. The CLIA regulations can be found at the CMS website. 

Labs beginning operation must complete and submit the following forms:

• Idaho Laboratory Registration Form
• CLIA Lab Registration Form