COLA Inc. accredits more than 7,000 medical laboratories and provides a program of education and accreditation in accordance with a quality management system certified to ISO 9001. The organization is an independent, non-profit accreditor whose education-based program and standards enable laboratories to meet U.S. CLIA 88 and other best practices.
COLA’s accreditation program provides direct access to technical support, non-reciprocal surveys and a standardized program that COLA customers have valued for more than 30 years. COLA’s team of knowledgeable professionals help all types and sizes of clinical laboratories. COLA is approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to accredit laboratories for compliance with CLIA for the specialties of chemistry, hematology, immunology, immunohematology and pathology, to include histopathology, cytology and oral pathology. COLA has expertise in specialized testing to include mass spectrometry, digital pathology, molecular diagnostics and transfusion services.
COLA also offers its e-learning platform, known as COLA Academy, which showcases educational resources and courses developed by subject matter experts for healthcare professionals, laboratory directors and scientists. Annually, COLA offers the Laboratory Enrichment Forum, which is a must-attend for laboratory directors, managers, supervisors, technical consultants, testing personnel, quality managers and regulatory experts.
For more information about COLA accreditation services and educational products, and online educational opportunities, please visit cola.org, call 800-981-9883 or email us at info@cola.org. With 30 years of experience and the completion of more than 100,000 laboratory surveys, COLA is one of America’s leading laboratory accreditors.
Our Mission
COLA is a physician-directed organization whose purpose is to promote health and safety through accreditation and educational programs.
COLA’s Board of Directors includes experts in clinical laboratory science and physicians representing the American Medical Association, the American College of Physicians and the American Academy of Family Physicians. It is in partnership with this community of incredible experts and dedicated leaders that we serve the nation’s laboratories.