Lab Matters Spring 2018 | Page 3

LAB MATTERS spring 2018 | contents COLUMNS Food Safety 2 24 A New Beginning: PulseNet Middle East Reinvigorated President’s/Executive Director’s Message Environmental Health SECTIONS Public Health Preparedness and Response 4 Goodbye to Mice? APHL and CDC Host LRN Botulinum Neurotoxin Detection Training 5 Preparing for the Super Bowl: Minnesota Gets Ahead of the Game 6 Three Years, Seven Stories: Reflecting on Biosafety and Biosecurity Progress 25 Changing the Pediatric Lead Reference Level: What It Means for the Public Health Laboratory 26 Is There Cyanide in My Drinking Water? Policy 28 From Atlanta to Washington, APHL Supports Public Health Policy Infectious Diseases Partner Profile 14 15 Minutes With Dr. Sonja Rasmussen 29 MicrobeNet: Identifying Hard-to- Identify Pathogens From the Bench 30 Syphilis Rising: APHL’s Efforts to Address Another Historic Foe 8 FEATURE Institutional Research When the Water Comes, Be Prepared 16 Louisville Expands Arbovirus Surveillance, Streamlines Mosquito Testing 31 Data Dive: Preparing for the Unexpected 18 Mycobacterium tuberculosis Next Generation Sequencing: Hitting the Easy Button Membership Newborn Screening 32 100 Faces of Excellence in Missouri 19 NBS Programs Get “Building Blocks” to Implement Electronic Data Exchange 34 Monitoring Environmental Conditions in the Buckeye State Global Health Fellows 20 Public Health System Reform in Ukraine: Making Impactful Changes in the Public Health Laboratory 36 APHL Fellowship Programs Update 21 After Civil War and Ebola, Sierra Leone Grapples with Mother Nature According to a study by the National Center for Atmospheric Research, the volume of rainfall from storms will rise by as much as 80% in North America by the end of the century. For state and local governmental laboratories, these data are a wake-up call. Not only do storms and floods threaten public health laboratory facilities, but receding floodwaters pose serious public health risks. So what’s the best weapon in a public health lab’s arsenal? Preparation for inundation…from any source. 22 Linking Lab Systems and Workforce Development via GHSA 23 Zambia Commissions New Molecular Biology Lab for EID and Viral Load Testing APHL LAB MATTERS STAFF APHL BOARD OF DIRECTORS Gynene Sullivan, MA, Editor Ewa King, PhD, president Karen Klinedinst, Art Director Joanne Bartkus, PhD, D(ABMM), president-elect Jody DeVoll, MAT, Advisor To submit an article for consideration, contact Gynene Sullivan, editor, at [email protected]. The Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) works to strengthen laboratory systems serving the public’s health in the US and globally. APHL’s member laboratories protect the public’s health by monitoring and detecting infectious and foodborne diseases, environmental contaminants, terrorist agents, genetic disorders in newborns and other diverse health threats. 8515 Georgia Avenue, Suite 700 Silver Spring, MD 20910 Grace E. Kubin, PhD, member-at-large Denise Marie Toney, PhD, HCLD(ABB), member-at-large Scott J. Zimmerman, DrPH, MPH, HCLD(ABB), member-at-large Maria Lucia Ishida, PhD, public health associate institutional member representative Tamara Theisen, MT(ASCP), local institutional member representative Mark Wade, local institutional member representative Phone: [phone] Fax: [phone] E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.aphl.org PublicHealthLabs Bill Whitmar, MS, secretary-treasurer A. Christian Whelen, PhD, D(ABMM), past president Scott J. Becker, MS, ex officio, executive director, APHL @APHL APHL.org Spring 2018 LAB MATTERS 1