MEMBERSHIP
The Laboratory District: Protecting the Nation’s Capital
by Nancy Maddox, MPH, writer
Washington, DC—part local/state
jurisdiction, part federal city, part
tourist magnet—is “very different now
than it was 20 years ago,” says Anthony
Tran, DrPH, MPH, D(ABMM), head of the
District of Columbia (DC) Public Health
Laboratory. A new crop of businesses,
new ballpark, changing neighborhoods
and Michelin-starred restaurants give
the area a “Manhattan-esque” vibe says
Tran, a former Midtown Manhattanite
himself. But just as the city has changed,
so too has its public health laboratory,
now housed in a cutting-edge, 6.5-year-old
building near L’Enfant Plaza.
Unlike most public health laboratories
(PHLs), the DC laboratory is not part
of its jurisdiction’s health agency. Instead,
it is a division of the laboratory-focused
DC Department of Forensic Sciences,
which also includes the Forensic
Science Laboratory and Crime Scene
Sciences Division.
In recent years, DC PHL has done
everything from testing a raccoon that
attacked a US park ranger (it was positive
for rabies) to processing “near-record
numbers” of unknown white powders
to analyzing an unusual sheen on the
Potomac River (caused by turbine oil).
But its bread-and-butter work is disease
surveillance, controlled substances testing
and diagnostic and reference testing on
behalf of the DC Department of Health
(DC Health) and area clinics and hospitals.
Facility
In 2012, the laboratory moved into a
brand-new glass, steel and concrete
building across the street from the
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention’s (CDC’s) DC office and just
blocks away from the US Capitol, White
House, FBI headquarters and dozens of
other high-profile federal landmarks.
The facility is a 15-minute walk from the
District Wharf—a $2 billion revitalization
of DC’s Southwest Waterfront—and from
the acclaimed Arena Stage theater, where
the laboratory hosts large-scale events.
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LAB MATTERS Spring 2019
The staff of the DC Public Health Laboratory. Photo: DC PHL
fellowship, based at the University of
North Carolina–Chapel Hill Hospitals.
At the conclusion of his fellowship, he
became a diplomate of the American
Board of Medical Microbiology and took
a position at the New York City PHL,
where he oversaw laboratory operations
and provided technical input into all
scientific areas. In 2016, Tran returned
to Washington to fill the newly vacated
director’s post at DC PHL.
Staff
The 351,000-square-foot building boasts
two BSL-3 suites and a Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)
platinum certification—the highest
level possible. It sports such ecofriendly
components as a green roof, waterless
urinals and a system of external glass
panels that auto-adjust to regulate the
building’s sun exposure and internal
temperature. A multi-tiered security
system includes outdoor barricades
(concealed in benches and planters),
24-hour camera surveillance, iris scans,
electronic badges and physical door locks.
The PHL occupies 33,539 square feet of the
eight-story building, taking up the fourth
floor and parts of the second floor.
Director
Tran was born in Washington, DC, and
raised in nearby Montgomery County,
Maryland. He earned a BS in medical
technology from the University of
Maryland School of Medicine and went
to work for the National Institutes of
Health testing specimens from patients
enrolled in clinical research studies.
After gaining an MPH from University
of Maryland College Park, Tran became
APHL’s HIV/STD/TB Program manager and
also worked in the association’s global
health areas for over seven years. Tran
left APHL to continue his education at the
University of California, Berkeley, where
he earned a DrPH. Following graduation,
Tran secured a coveted American
Society for Microbiology Committee
on Postdoctoral Education Programs
The laboratory has 34.5 FTEs, including
a scientific staff of 10 chemists and
17 medical technologists. It also supports
a laboratory/epidemiology coordinator
who splits her time between the PHL
and the DC Health, and employs three
contract chemists and two contract
medical technologists.
Revenue
The laboratory’s $5.6 million annual
budget comes from a combination of city
funds (60.2%) and federal grants (39.8%).
Testing
Owing to its physical and organizational
position, the laboratory has a unique
and broad portfolio encompassing “all
the PHL stuff an urban jurisdiction
requires.” That means no dairy testing,
but ability to check for contamination at
public spray parks in summertime. The
laboratory participates in the PulseNet
foodborne disease surveillance network,
Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory
Network, Laboratory Response Network
(LRN) for biological pathogens (Tier 1
capabilities), LRN for chemical agents
(Level 2), CaliciNet, OutbreakNet
Enhanced, FluNet and ArboNet. Among
other things, it has ability to confirm
infection with Ebola virus and other
emerging pathogens, to measure trace
elements in environmental samples,
to identify pathogens in foods and to
analyze law enforcement seizures for
novel street drugs.
PublicHealthLabs
@APHL
APHL.org