Education / Training

Sentinel Lab Courses

The course is designed to help clinical laboratories improve knowledge and best practices of biosecurity.

• Biosecurity for Clinical Labs

This virtual exercise presents virtual case studies using sentinel laboratory protocols in a safe environment to detect potential bio-threat agents.

• BT Rule Out or Refer: Virtual Knowledge Exercise

Each spring, SHL offers a wet workshop for hands-on practice using the Sentinel Level Clinical Laboratory Protocols for Suspected Biological Threat Agents and Emerging Infectious Diseases. Microbiologists new to clinical labs, laboratory managers and laboratorians who want to improve or retain proficiency with select agents should attend this important training event.

After completing the workshop, participants have learned how to 1) rule out five organisms using approved Laboratory Response Network (LRN) protocols, (2) describe the etiology and clinical presentation of five organisms, (3) describe the notification process if one of the five organisms is suspected and (4) understand the principles of Rule Out Or Refer (ROOR).

For more information about the BT Wet Workshop, contact Norma Miller, SHL Biological Threat Coordinator/Biosafety Officer.

The course is designed to help clinical laboratories improve knowledge and best practices of biosecurity.

• CDC Specimen-collection Protocol for Chemical Exposure

The Hygienic Laboratory offers several courses for public health professionals through Prepare Iowa’s Learning Management System. (Accessing courses may require creating a password and logging in.)

• The Role of Sentinel Labs in Emergency Response
• Biosafety: Avoiding Laboratory Acquired Infections

These presentations from SHL scientists focus on the lab’s emergency response activities.

• Chemical Terrorism Program Packaging and Shipping
• State Hygienic Laboratory’s Role in Emergency Response

Iowa LRN

If you are not a member of the ILRN but would like to join, contact the State Hygienic Lab. Please indicate "ILRN request" in the subject line of your email.

The Laboratory Response Network (LRN) was founded in 1999 by the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to improve readiness for bioterrorism events. It develops, maintains and strengthens a network of laboratories to respond quickly to biological and chemical threats and other high priority public health emergencies. For more information about the LRN, visit CDC’s LRN webpage.

The Iowa Laboratory Response Network (ILRN) is Iowa’s statewide network of sentinel-level clinical laboratories that serve the LRN.

The State Hygienic Laboratory serves as Iowa’s reference-level laboratory in the LRN. In this role, SHL is responsible for investigating and/or referring specimens to National Laboratories, including those operated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), U.S. Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) and the Naval Medical Research Center (NMRC). SHL also maintains the ILRN by providing training and guidance to sentinel laboratories throughout Iowa.

Sentinel Laboratories are clinical diagnostic labs capable of analyzing or referring specimens that may contain microbial agents or biological toxins. These labs play a key role in the early detection of biological agents by providing routine diagnostic services, rule-out and referral steps in the identification process.

According to the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) definition, a sentinel-level laboratory is any laboratory that meets the following conditions:

• Certified to perform high complexity testing under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA) by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for the specialty of Microbiology,
• OR the laboratory is a Department of Defense (DoD) Laboratory certified under the DoD Clinical Laboratory Improvement Program (CLIP),
• OR the laboratory is a veterinary medical diagnostic laboratory that is fully accredited by the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians (AAVLD),
• AND the laboratory’s in-house testing includes Gram stains and at least one of the following: lower respiratory tract, wound or blood culture.

For details about qualifications, roles and responsibilities of Sentinel Clinical Laboratories, read the “Definition of Sentinel Clinical Laboratories” from APHL.

How can my lab join the ILRN distribution list?

The ILRN distribution list is currently managed by SHL through a Google Group. The information provided through this distribution list contains items of clinical and public health significance, such as microbiology topics, training opportunities and preparedness activities, not just those associated with the potential agents of bioterrorism.

Questions?

Contact Laina Edwards, SHL Training Supervisor.

Lab Symposium

SHL hosts the annual Laboratory Symposium for laboratory personnel who are in the drinking water and wastewater fields. These include chemists and laboratory specialists, water and wastewater operators, consultants and other environmental professionals. All interested parties are welcome to attend.

The symposium generally includes updates about rules and testing methods, current topics, practical tips for use in the lab, and breakout sessions.

To register for the upcoming Lab Symposium, click here.

Professional Development

The following courses are designed to introduce public and environmental health professionals to topics in management, administration and ethics with a focus on laboratory settings.

Define and explain resource management terms and concepts, outline resource management processes, and explain how resources are managed and monitored in a public health laboratory.

Define and describe the creation, approval and management of budgets, and explain how income and expenditures are monitored in a public health laboratory.

Define measurement, discuss the difference between precision and accuracy, compute standard deviation, and describe key measurement tools and methods.

Identify lean management tools, learn the steps of the 6S process, discuss the four forms of waste addressed by 6S, describe the importance of the planning process and identify the benefits of 6S.

Recognize non-technical staff members’ responsibility to conduct themselves ethically, define their role in maintaining data integrity, recognize the dangers of fraud, and list the steps and documentation necessary to maintain chain of custody.

Recognize technical staff members’ responsibility to conduct themselves ethically, define their role in maintaining data integrity, recognize the dangers of fraud, and list the steps and documentation necessary to maintain chain of custody.

Resources

This webpage from CDC’s Division of Laboratory Systems links to information about biosafety initiatives, trainings and additional resources for laboratorians.

This webpage links to updated protocols designed to offer LRN Sentinel Clinical Laboratories standardized, practical methods to rule out or refer suspected agents of bioterrorism.

This set of cards from the Association of Public Health Laboratories, Laboratory Response Network and American Society for Microbiology describes how to recognize, rule out and refer BT agents.

This poster from the Association of Public Health Laboratories describes six BT agents: anthrax, brucellosis, glanders, melioidosis, tularemia and plague.

Developed by SHL, this internship model describes how to develop a successful internship program and includes examples of forms, checklists and other tools.

This comprehensive, open catalog offers online training opportunities for the public health workforce and the many disciplines that work with public health.

This SHL webpage explains lean processes and process improvement and links to a variety of tools related to lean.

This webpage describes public health workforce needs, training opportunities and careers in Iowa.

This webpage links to information about careers available in public health.