The best conferences are often those where the participants are from a mixture of different disciplines. There is a cross fertilization of ideas and a wider perspective of common problems. The 6th International Meeting on Clinical Laboratory Organization and Management, held in Noordwijkerhout, The Netherlands, on 24th-28th June 1987 lived up to its promise of a stimu­ lating program and differing views from a wide range of international par­ ticipants. The theme of the conference was "Laboratory Data and Patient Care" and this provided a forum for discussion of many aspects of laboratory input into the diagnosis and monitoring of disease. The titles of the papers in this book of the proceedings will give some indication of the breadth of topics discussed, ranging from problems of laboratory management and pro­ fessional leadership to educating the clinician in the most cost effective testing strategies; and computer aided diagnosis to the best presentation of data and graphical displays. The backgrounds of the participants were equally wide, ranging from medical statisticians and computer experts to practising clinicians and heads of clinical laboratories. There was also a significant number of delegates from commercial companies who were able to inject a different perspective on many problems. This blend of backgrounds and disciplines promoted much discussion and new avenues for research and development.