Building global capacity to handle disease threats

Course Instructor provides an overview of cabinet features during hands-on session during a biological safety cabinet certification training in Tanzania.

In June 2023, 15 professionals from Cambodia, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Yemen gathered at Tanzania’s National Public Health Laboratory in Dar es Salaam with one common goal: to gain an understanding in certifying biological safety cabinets. Proper certification to verify that biological safety cabinets function as designed by the manufacturer is vital to a laboratory’s capacity to safely handle infectious materials, a need that is only amplified during disease outbreaks. The four-day course was packed with demonstrations, discussions and measurement practice.

A biological safety cabinet is a specialized type of laboratory equipment that provides a clean work environment and protects laboratory staff when working with infectious agents or toxins. Biological safety cabinets have high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters that trap biohazards and ensure that only microbe-free exhaust air is discharged from the cabinet. They provide important protections but must be properly maintained.

Prior to 2022, pursuing biological safety cabinet certification training required travel to North America or scheduling visits from North American experts. Recognizing the unsustainable nature of this arrangement, APHL partnered with the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), subject matter experts and Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Science (MUHAS) in Dar es Salaam to create and launch a three-week online course followed by in-person hands-on practice at the Tanzania National Public Health Laboratory.

This course is taught by MUHAS instructors who are mentored and coached by the course developer, a subject matter expert from Thermo Fisher Scientific. The course prepares participants to complete the NSF Basic Accreditation testing.

Professionals attending the course this summer were only the second cohort to go through the training program, and almost all came from the public sector. Of the 15 course participants, 11 stayed on immediately following the hands-on portion to complete the three-day NSF accreditation testing. Those who pass NSF’s written and seven practical tests will be listed as NSF-accredited certifiers. Thanks to ongoing collaboration with APHL and partners, MUHAS intends to offer the course and bring NSF to Tanzania every summer, which will continue to build global capacity for handling disease threats.

Click through this slideshow to see photos from the training:

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Celebrating 1 Year of NCBI Virtual Outreach Events

We launched the NCBI Virtual Outreach Event series in the fall of 2021 to expand our online outreach to a worldwide audience of people who use NCBI resources for biological/biomedical research, science education, and clinical applications. Our virtual outreach events include interactive workshops, webinars, and codeathons. In the past year, we have hosted 34 virtual … Continue reading Celebrating 1 Year of NCBI Virtual Outreach Events

Project Firstline Reaches Frontline Healthcare Workforce with Infection Control Training

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted long-standing gaps in infection control knowledge and understanding among the frontline healthcare workforce. Since the onset of the pandemic, healthcare-associated infections and antibiotic-resistant infections have increased, reversing national progress made before 2020.

Infectious disease threats like Ebola, COVID-19, and antibiotic resistance will continue to emerge. It’s more important than ever that we equip our nation’s healthcare workforce with the infection control knowledge they need to protect themselves, their patients, and their communities.

One year ago, this month, CDC launched Project Firstline. Project Firstline provides engaging, innovative, and effective infection control education and training for U.S. frontline healthcare workers.

Meeting the Needs of the Diverse Healthcare Workforce

Project Firstline’s innovative content is designed for all healthcare workers, regardless of their previous training or educational background. The program’s training and educational materials provide critical infection control information in a format that best meets healthcare workers’ needs.

During its first year, Project Firstline and its partners hosted more than 300 educational events on infection control and developed more than 130 educational products. The products are accessible on a variety of digital platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, and CDC and partner websites. Products currently available on the CDC Project Firstline site include:

Maximizing Impact through Partnerships

Project Firstline brings together academic, public health, and healthcare partners plus 64 state, local, and territorial health departments to provide infection control educational resources to healthcare workers nationwide.

Our partners have used a diverse range of products and activities to reach healthcare workers with tailored infection control information during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of these activities include Twitter chats, podcasts, videos,  and virtual training events simulcast and translated into multiple languages.

Additionally, Project Firstline launched the Community College Collaborative in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the League of Innovation in the Community College. The program is integrating enhanced infection control content into the health programs of community college classrooms. The program was piloted this summer with faculty cohorts from 16 participating colleges across a range of community college settings. Faculty came together to tailor the infection control curriculum for each professional area, with a plan to phase it into their coursework. Professional areas included:

  • emergency medical services
  • respiratory care
  • nursing
  • practical nursing and nursing assistants
  • medical assisting

This effort will help ensure that the future healthcare workforce starts their careers with key infection control knowledge to protect themselves and their patients.

The Future of Project Firstline

Project Firstline aims to become the go-to resource for infection control among healthcare workers. It will focus on building a strong culture of infection control within all healthcare facilities.

Using insights learned during its first year, the program will create a new suite of readily available and easy-to-consume education materials. The new materials will be designed to help strengthen infection prevention and control capacities beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Thanks in advance for your questions and comments on this Public Health Matters post. Please note that CDC does not give personal medical advice. If you are concerned you have a disease or condition, talk to your doctor.

Have a question for CDC? CDC-INFO (http://www.cdc.gov/cdc-info/index.html) offers live agents by phone and email to help you find the latest, reliable, and science-based health information on more than 750 health topics.

Lab Culture Ep. 21: 2019 Year in Review

Collage of photos depicting APHL's 2019 year in review

Are we already at the end of 2019?! While to many of us it felt like the year flew by, APHL staff, members and partners accomplished a LOT in an effort to protect the public’s health. In this episode, Scott Becker, APHL’s executive director, reviews some of the highlights of the year along with Gynene Sullivan, APHL’s manager of communications, who is finalizing our Annual Report.

Follow APHL on TwitterFacebook and Instagram so you don’t miss anything!

Links:

APHL: Lung Injury Response Associated with Vaping

CDC: Outbreak of Lung Injury Associated with the Use of E-Cigarette, or Vaping, Products

APHL work on opioids

Data: Elemental to Health advocacy campaign

Supporting rapid exchange of public health data is urgent, crucial and laden with challenges

APHL AIMS Platform

Lab Matters (Fall 2019): Making Data Fly

NewSTEPs Data Repository

APHL Newborn Screening Systems Quality Improvement Projects Award Recipients Announced

APHL Public Health Laboratory Fellowships

APHL Emerging Leader Program

Lab Culture Ep. 9: What is the APHL Emerging Leader Program?

CDC: US Measles Cases and Outbreaks in 2019

“Launching Whole Genome Sequencing in the Public Health Realm” Lab Matters (Fall 2013)

Accreditation for Human and Animal Food Labs

APHL Conferences

Lab Culture Extra: Progress in Sierra Leone

APHL Global Health Program: Countries we serve

Global Laboratory Leadership Programme (GLLP)

Laboratory Response Network (LRN)

Lab Culture Ep. 20: 20 Years of the Laboratory Response Network

“Two Decades of Preparedness Excellence: The Laboratory Response Network” Lab Matters (Fall 2019)

The LRN’s job is to prepare, detect and respond. But what exactly does that mean?

Strengthening Lab Biosafety & Biosecurity

“Ensuring Readiness for Rabies in Puerto Rico” Lab Matters (Spring 2019)

“Public Health System Recovery in Full Swing: Hurricane Response in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands” Lab Matters (Spring 2019)

In Puerto Rico, a new molecular bacteriology lab allows better control of foodborne outbreaks

APHL Publications

“US officials identify ‘strong culprit’ in vaping illnesses” Associated Press (video interview)

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NCBI to help with Rocky Mountain Genomics HackCon, June 17 – 21, 2019

The NCBI will participate in a one-day conference on June 18, 2019 and a hackathon, June 19-21, 2019 as a part of Rocky Mountain Genomics Hackcon 2019 at the BioFrontiers Institute in Boulder Colorado. The conference will feature technical speakers in precision medicine, metagenomics, and advanced RNA-Seq analysis, as well as an exhibitor and poster … … Continue reading

New Lab Matters: The ABCs of PFAS

New Lab Matters: The ABCs of PFAS | www.APHLblog.org

First discovered in the 1930s, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) now pervade almost every aspect of modern life. In fact, PFAS compounds are found in everything from dental floss to cookware. But human exposure to PFAS comes at a cost, and as old compounds are removed from production, new compounds take their place. So how does a public health laboratory handle this challenge with limited resources? As our feature article shows, by establishing new public-private partnerships.

Here are just a few of this issue’s highlights:

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New lab informatics courses introduce basics to non-specialists  

New lab informatics courses introduce basics to non-specialists | www.APHLblog.org

Two online laboratory informatics courses now on the CDC TRAIN site help laboratory staff to understand how their jobs relate to their laboratory’s informatics system. Developed by APHL and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in collaboration with the APHL Informatics Committee and members of the target audience, the courses follow a TB specimen as it advances through testing and reporting to inform decisions by clinical care providers and public health agencies.

Historically the term “informatics” evoked fear among laboratory staff who avoided the unfamiliar discipline. Responsibility for the function often devolved to one person who became the de facto informatician more by accident than by intent. When the new skill set proved highly marketable, this individual often departed for new opportunities, leaving the laboratory with no one who could distinguish between LOINC and SNOMED codes, much less maintain the Laboratory Information Management System.

But times have changed. With electronic data now integral to work at both private and public sector laboratories, all staff require a basic knowledge of informatics. With an understanding of how the data they touch flows in and out of their facility, staff can improve the quality and speed of laboratory operations and, ultimately, patient treatment and disease control.

The two online courses, Life of a Specimen and Life of a Result, trace the testing and reporting process in plain language, explaining who comes into contact with the specimen at each point, when errors are most likely to occur and how to avoid them, and how a specimen becomes a result and is reported to stakeholders. Both courses offer P.A.C.E.® credits. Visit CDC TRAIN to register.

Specifically:

  • Life of a Specimen introduces staff roles in laboratory informatics, data relationships, data quality and standards, and the generation and flow of information as a specimen progresses through the pre-analytic, analytic and post-analytic phases.
  • Life of a Result examines how data and information move through and outside the laboratory to impact clinical care and public health decision making.  It covers the recipients of laboratory data, data and results storage, and communication of data and results to stakeholders.

The two courses would be a valuable addition to staff onboarding programs at laboratories of all types. Keith Higginbotham, IT systems manager at the Alabama Department of Public Health, laments that such training was not available earlier in his career:

“I wish I’d had access to this training when I was first starting out. It condenses a year’s worth of knowledge into a few hours, giving lab staff from all backgrounds a real head start. Those in leadership can become stronger advocates for their labs by better understanding their informatics needs and capabilities.”

A third course, which takes the student on a deeper journey into Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS), is in production and slated for release in 2019.

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New Lab Matters: Time to welcome the next generation of public health laboratory scientists

New Lab Matters: Time to welcome the next generation of public health laboratory scientists | www.APHLblog.org

The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 12,000 new laboratory professionals are needed each year to meet consumer demand. At the same time, while automation has eliminated some less-skilled laboratory jobs, the growing sophistication of public health laboratory analyses has generated demand for scientists with highly specialized training. As our feature article shows, laboratories are recruiting new talent for the “hidden profession” by taking a hard look into what they really want, and how they want to work.

Here are just a few of this issue’s highlights:

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Partner, Train, Respond: Increasing Global Emergency Management Capacity

People walking a busy street in Zanzibar.

Countries in Africa are no strangers to major disease outbreaks that can result in illness and death of millions of people.  In the past two years alone the continent has experienced infectious disease outbreaks of cholera, meningitis, Ebola Virus Disease, Lassa fever, and Yellow fever, and other public health emergencies such as drought and famine.

Understanding the big picture

Training participants from Zanzibar discuss the development of an emergency management program
Training participants from Zanzibar discuss the development of an emergency management program.

It is vitally important to have a big picture perspective on emergency management and response – if one country is not prepared for a public health emergency, then all the countries in the region are susceptible to public health threats that can easily cross borders and impact surrounding countries. This is where public health emergency management (PHEM) comes in. In-country PHEM capacities and systems can be strengthened to support global health security. When the workforce is trained, emergency management infrastructure is in place, and functional systems exist, a country is better positioned to execute a coordinated response that can mitigate risk and save lives.

CDC and other international partners support ongoing efforts to help countries across Africa build capacity in outbreak detection and response. This includes preventing avoidable epidemics, detecting public health threats early, and responding rapidly and effectively to outbreaks of international concern. CDC provides expertise in PHEM to train emergency management technicians, provide input on emergency management operations, and guide development of functional processes and systems for ministries of health around the globe.

Getting the workforce ready to respond

In August 2017, CDC spearheaded a 5-day PHEM workshop in partnership with the World Health Organization, the United States Defense Threat Reduction Agency, and Public Health England.  The workshop brought together 55 emergency management staff members from across Africa to learn from experts in the field about how to enhance coordination and response capabilities of their country’s PHEM programs.

Participants came from seven countries – Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria – which all share common interests and challenges related to emergency response. The training focused on developing core principles in PHEM, including trained staff, physical infrastructure, and processes to run a fully functional Public Health Emergency Operations Center (PHEOC). The training highlighted best practices, but since many of the participants had first-hand accounts of responding to public health events in their own countries, they were encouraged to share experiences and network with their peers.

Sharing knowledge and expertise

Public health professionals who work in emergency response know that it’s important to build relationships before an incident so that during a response you work effectively and efficiently with partners. One participant noted that the “rich, valuable contributions from other people’s experiences to build upon what I already knew” was one of the most rewarding parts of the workshop.

The tabletop exercises at the end of the workshop emphasized the importance of information and idea sharing. Participants engaged in tabletop exercises that simulated a response to a Yellow Fever outbreak in northern Tanzania. Participants were divided into 7 teams: management, plans, logistics, operations, finance and administration, communication, and partners. Each team had a mix of participants from different countries.  Teams utilized information they had learned throughout the workshop to developed response products, including an organizational structure chart, objectives for the response, and an initial situation report. This exercise led to a robust conversation about different approaches to public health emergency response.

Seeing response in action

Public Health Emergency Operations staff survey the scene after mudslides in Regent, Sierra Leone.
Public Health Emergency Operations staff survey the scene after mudslides in Regent, Sierra Leone.

A highlight of the training was when Dr. Ally Nyanga, the Tanzania Ministry of Health PHEOC Manager and an alumni of the CDC Public Health Emergency Management Fellowship, took workshop participants on a tour of the Tanzania PHEOC, a small room on the third floor of the Ministry of Health building. Previously used as a storage area for the library, the 10 x 20 foot PHEOC is now an efficient space that staff can use when they respond to public health emergencies and outbreaks.  To date, Tanzania’s PHEOC has been activated to respond to widespread cases of Aflotoxicosis, a type of severe food poisoning, and cholera outbreaks in Tanzania.

While the workshop is over and participants have returned home, the work that they do to prepare for the next public health emergency is ongoing. The workshop highlighted some important takeaways – you do not need a big space and high-tech equipment to respond quickly and efficiently to a public health emergency.  Instead, coordination to share information, resources, and ideas is vital to a successful emergency response, both in-country and across an entire region.

Learn more

Building the Future Preparedness and Response Workforce

Woman typing

 TRAIN Learning Network InfographicWhen I think about public health preparedness and response I ask myself three questions:
  • Who provides the infrastructure to train public health responders?
  • Where do they learn what they know?
  • Who helps a responder fulfill their mission?

The answers to these questions may rest in the TRAIN Learning Network (TRAIN). After the September 11th terrorist attacks, public health departments needed a way to track the preparedness-related training of professionals in their state, region, or locality. TRAIN was established in 2003 to offer a solution to the tracking challenge and help train the next generation of the public health workforce.

This network IS the track on which the trains run (pun intended)! If we equip responders with as many skills and as much knowledge as possible before an incident, we can expect:

  • Increased expertise during a response,
  • Just-in-time training that is more readily available,
  • Quicker response and recovery efforts, and
  • Greater resilience.

What is TRAIN?

TRAIN is a national learning network of agencies and organizations that deliver, track, and share trainings for professionals who protect and improve the public’s health. The network identifies, develops, and promotes opportunities for professionals to build their skills and knowledge.

TRAIN is an open platform, meaning that anyone, anywhere can access the training. Learners have access to thousands of health knowledge and skill-related courses. An emergency management specialist at a state health department can take courses in other disciplines or topic areas with content that is curated by the CDC or another partner in the network.

Learners are able to search TRAIN for courses that are tagged with PHEP Capabilities or PHPR Core Competencies. You can register as a learner through your state’s TRAIN affiliate or through CDC TRAIN.TRAIN has more than 1.5 million registered learners in all 50 states, 5 U.S. territories, and 177 countries.

How does TRAIN work?

TRAIN is a collaboration between 27 state health agencies and partners, as well as 3 federal partners – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Veterans Health Administration, and Medical Reserve Corps – who serve as TRAIN Learning Network affiliates. More than a thousand CDC-developed learning opportunities are available to all the registered learners in the TRAIN network.

TRAIN affiliates operate branded online portals, which allow them to:

  • Identify specific groups of learners for targeted courses or training plans
  • Monitor training and completion of specific groups of learners, including the use of custom reports
  • Partner on training with state, tribal, local, territorial, national, and international providers

Meanwhile, organizations that provide training, including other government agencies, academic institutions, and nongovernmental organizations can:Why is TRAIN a wise investment? Over 12 years (2005 – 2016), the Kansas Department of Health and Environment saw a cost savings of $35 million as a result of staff taking trainings through its portal, KS TRAIN. Learners and the agency saved travel expenses as well as personal costs.

  • Assign training to a specific group of learners and monitor their progress towards completion
  • Test knowledge and collect feedback, develop custom curricula, and access course data

The TRAIN approach fosters collaboration, saves cost by reducing duplication, and reaches learners across jurisdictional lines. This ensures that together, we can train the entire workforce with all the tools at our collective disposal.

Get more information

If you have additional questions, please send an email to training@PHF.org.