Lab Matters Fall 2024 | Page 145

APHL 2024 POSTER ABSTRACTS

Results : From 2016 to 2023 , DCLS hosted 25 college interns as part of its Summer Internship Program . 76 % of these interns returned to work at DCLS in some capacity . The DCLS Internship Program introduces college students to public health and the many job opportunities it can provide . Students who enter the program may use this experience to make future career decisions . A strong internship experience at a state public health lab helps to not only promote public health and laboratory science as career options but gives students a hands-on opportunity to apply their classroom instruction to real world issues .

Conclusions : Hosting an internship program and recruiting college students to work in a public health laboratory not only increases the awareness of the critical work performed but also provides an opportunity for laboratories to bolster their workforce . Outreach and communication between public health laboratories and local academic institutions is a useful tool for ensuring a well-qualified and diverse public health laboratory workforce while at the same time addressing the recent and ongoing workforce attrition .

Presenter : Katherine Wentz , katherine . wentz @ dgs . virginia . gov

Retention and Turnover : An Analysis of Workforce Dynamics in Public Health Laboratories Pre-and Post-pandemic

S . Ahmadi , I . Eaves , S . Sarvarzade , L . Kurimski , Association of Public Health Laboratories

This poster delves into factors influencing workforce retention within public health laboratories . Based on responses to 2016 , 2022 and 2024 surveys , our analysis spotlights the primary factors contributing to the decision to stay or leave . These factors include but are not limited to personnel policies , pay , benefits , job location , continuing education , career growth and workload . This exploration provides essential insights for tailoring strategies to enhance workforce satisfaction and longevity in public health laboratories . Additionally , it offers a generic framework for understanding the dynamic interplay of factors impacting workforce dynamics over time .

Presenter : Sudaba Parnian Ahmadi , sudaba . parnian @ aphl . org

Wellness In The Workplace : The Incorporation of Training With Personal Resiliency and Its Effect on Retention

M . Crum , B . Cagle-White , A . Elbadawi , J . Yost , C . Wheatley , University of Texas at Tyler Health Science Center

Workplace development and retention in public health laboratories is an essential component of the ability to build and maintain public health laboratory capacity . There is no time in recent memory that this truth has been more apparent than during the initial COVID-19 response , which resulted in excessive turnover of a multitude of lab positions and the retirement of many seasoned laboratorians . While most conclude this was from stress and workload , it is well established that the other components of lifestyle medicine like sleep , nutrition , social connectedness , physical activity and avoidance of harmful substances are also essential for well-being .

In this work , we describe the renovation of an existing laboratory space and the integration of students in psychology and public health in creating a survey to inform the best utilization of the room for employees , along with existing information on this topic from APHL ’ s employee retention toolkit ( e-LEET ) designed by the Emerging Leader Program . The goal of this renovation is to create a room that will allow for the promotion of wellness for all staff despite the challenges within the laboratory workplace with a particular focus on times of outbreak response . The survey results will indicate how best to utilize this room for training and retention while providing a unique opportunity for employee wellness to promote personal resiliency . Some outcomes measured will include job satisfaction and how it relates to personal resiliency as well as the overall effect on employee retention . We hope this model can help inform other public health laboratories on how best to address these workforce challenges .

Presenter : Michelle Crum , michelle . crum @ uthct . edu

Training to Identify and Address Root Causes in Nonconforming Events

D . Gonzalez , State Hygienic Lab at the University of Iowa

Using root cause analysis is an important tool in any lab . When nonconforming events ( NCEs ) occur , disrupting normal operations , it allows for the identification of the causes so that staff can correct it and prevent it from occurring again . However there can be many nuances and issues that make this a much more daunting task . In order to use RCA to its full potential requires good understanding of methods that are not part of the normal procedure in non-Quality Management related areas . In addition , while lab problems can be analyzed quantitatively , addressing them requires less tangible methods and training . These guidelines can assist laboratory staff in being better versed in addressing systemic lab issues and ensure that not only are causes appropriately identified , but the implemented solutions are proven effective .

Presenter : David Gonzalez , S davidlgonzalez47 @ gmail . com