Planning and Funding
P O Box 1600,
Telephone: 0064 3 364 4130
CHRISTCHURCH
Fax: 0064 3 364 4165
[email address]
11 March 2020
Amy S Van Wey Lovatt
Email: [FYI request #12429 email];
Dear Amy
RE Official information request CDHB 10287 and WCDHB 9405
We are writing to acknowledge your email received this morning requesting the following information under the
Official Information Act from Canterbury DHB and West Coast DHB regarding Best practice: Archiving, Storage,
Biobanking of Human Tissue for Diagnostic Purposes. Specifically:
1. I am writing to request a copy of the CDHB/WCDHB best practice protocol for the archiving, storage, or
biobanking of human tissue for diagnostic purposes, whether they are formalin fixed, paraffin embedded
or pathology slides, and the standards, legislation or scientific evidence which provides the basis for the
CDHB/WCDHB protocol.
2. Is the CDHB/WCDHB best practice protocol for the archiving, storage, or biobanking of human tissue for
diagnostic purposes, whether they are formalin fixed, paraffin embedded or pathology slides, is a
standard which is universally adopted by all NZ DHB's and medical laboratories, or does each DHB or
medical laboratory determine their own best practice?
3. Please explain the potential hazards of leaving formalin fixed, paraffin embedded or pathology slides in
an unsecure, non-temperature regulated environment (say a on an employee's desk outside of the
laboratory) for 2 months.
4.
Please provide me with the name of the independent agency or agencies which provides oversight for
medical laboratories in NZ.
We will consider your request against the provisions of the Official Information Act (see below) and advise you
of our decision regarding the release of information within 20 working days (being the statutory timeframe
provided within the Act.) Accordingly, we will notify you, no later than 8 April 2020, of our decision.
Your request is being handled by Kathleen Smitheram. If you have any queries, please feel free to contact
either myself (details above) or Kathleen.
([email address]; Phone 364-4134). Please
refer to the OIA number above when phoning or emailing.
If any additional factors come to light which are relevant to your request, please do not hesitate to contact us
so that these can be taken into account.
Yours sincerely
Wayne Turp
Project Specialist
15 Decisions on requests
(1) Subject to this Act, the department or Minister of the Crown or organisation to whom a request is made in accordance wit
h section 12
or is transferred in accordance wit
h section 14 of this Act o
r section 12 of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act
1987 shall, as soon as reasonably practicable, and in any case not later than 20 working days after the day on which the request is received
by that department or Minister of the Crown or organisation,—
(1)(a) decide whether the request is to be granted and, if it is to be granted, in what manner and for what charge (if any); and
(1)(b) give or post to the person who made the request notice of the decision on the request
[If we are unable to make a decision on your request by the date noted above, we will notify you of an extension of that timeframe.]