The inspection of the St James' Hospital in Dublin, Ireland took place on 8-9 October 2025. The inspection team consisted of the following inspectors (photo above from left to right):
JACIE Clinical Trainee: Karin Hohloch
Quality Management Inspector: Bim Laguda
Clinical Inspector and Team Leader: Azucena Losa
Collection Inspector: Amy Publicover
Processing Inspector: Henry Koenig
By Karin Hohloch, Hematologist at the Clinic for Hematology & Oncology Hirslanden Zurich, Switzerland.
Problems finding an inspection date – become a JACIE inspector
At our centre, we initially just wanted to schedule a German-language JACIE audit. That turned out to be more complicated than expected – and then came the suggestion: “Why not become a JACIE inspector yourself?” No sooner said than done. Hardly had the seminar in Berlin ended when I was already on my way to my very first trainee inspection – at St James’s Hospital in Dublin.
Preparation is everything
The planning and preparation went smoothly, thanks to the excellent support from the JACIE Office and from Xiu Li Tan. The online platform for the inspection documents is user-friendly, though the sheer volume of information can be impressive – and sometimes you need a good sense of direction to find everything you need.
Get to know other centres (and countries)
After arriving in Dublin, I even had time to explore the city a bit before meeting the European inspection team in the evening. From the very first dinner it was clear: experienced, supportive, and with a great sense of humour – I couldn’t have asked for a better team to start with. We exchanged first impressions about the documents and discussed potential issues.
St James’s Hospital is Ireland’s largest transplant centre, offering both autologous and allogeneic transplants as well as CAR‑T cell therapies. Experiencing an inspection from “the other side of the table” was fascinating – and I could immediately relate to the nervous anticipation of the programme team.
The first inspection is exciting...
The hospital team welcomed us warmly and supported the inspection with great professionalism. Thanks to the structured and respectful leadership of our team, the process ran smoothly and in a very collegial atmosphere. It was also quite interesting to see how differently inspectors work – from fully digital documentation to paper-based systems, and in one case, our Scottish colleague’s wonderfully colourful Post‑it system!
A heartfelt thank you
I learned so much during this first inspection – professionally, organisationally, and personally. My heartfelt thanks go to the entire inspection team, the fantastic colleagues at St James’s Hospital, Xiu Li Tan, and the JACIE Office. It was an inspiring experience that showed me how much you can learn when you suddenly find yourself sitting on the other side.