Photo By Seaman Lawrence Whaley III | Dr. Rebecca Taylor, a Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency forensic anthropologist...... read more read more
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JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii – The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency has completed annual lab proficiency testing on Oct. 31, reaffirming the agency’s commitment to the highest standards of scientific excellence in its mission to account for America’s missing personnel.
Following its recent accreditation by the American National Standards Institute National Accreditation Board, DPAA laboratories are still required to complete annual competency testing to maintain adherence to national scientific standards.
The lab analysts here and at Offutt Air Force Base were tested in three different lab disciplines: anthropology, odontology, and scene investigation.
Each year DPAA participants are given the option to complete forensic testing of a general overview of the topic that would require taking a written test covering the given disciplines. Upon completion, tests are sent back for grading and measurement of competency according to ISO/IEC 17025, the standard for testing laboratories.
While completing these general tests would meet the required annual standard, they do not encompass the fullness of forensic anthropology practiced by lab analysts at DPAA. To meet these high standards, DPAA contracts the assistance of subject matter experts, to conduct tests specific to DPAA lab specific duties.
“These tests are tailored to procedures specific to our lab duties, as opposed to general forensic anthropology," explained Kristin Bukovec, DPAA laboratory quality manager.
These lab specific tests not only give hands-on testing experience, but they also allow for immediate feedback and a discussion of lab practices to reinforce the standard operating procedures for DPAA laboratories.
In addition to subject matter experts administering tests, they also gave several lectures covering multiple topics regarding forensic anthropology. Lab personnel were given the opportunity to attend and participate in group discussions about the contents of the training.
Dr. Bill Belcher, one of the subject matter experts and former DPAA lab deputy director reflected on the advantages of using subject matter experts instead of general testing, “a lot of the general tests aren’t specific enough for this mission.”
“Following the protocol and going the extra step during the identification step help DPAA differentiate from other labs,” Belcher explained.
DPAA is committed to ensuring that families receive the fullest accounting possible. Annual proficiency testing that utilize subject matter experts guarantee that level of accounting is possible. “The idea is that we don’t want to be wrong,” Belcher explained. “We want to go the extra mile, because we want to be better than the general testing.”
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| Date Taken: | 11.18.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 11.18.2025 20:20 |
| Story ID: | 551663 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, HAWAII, US |
| Web Views: | 13 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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