Atlanta, GA
April 25-26, 2012
This two-day workshop held in Atlanta, GA was sponsored by the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE), with partial support from the Marler Clark law firm. The Forum assembled subject matter experts representing various fields, industries and agencies to discuss the complex issues of increasing culture independent methods in clinical diagnostic laboratories. The participatory meeting involved panels and breakout sessions where participants presented, discussed and brainstormed potential solutions to address the anticipated impacts of culture independent clinical diagnostics on surveillance activities. The Forum focused on bacterial enteric (primarily foodborne) diseases and included similar surveillance issues that other areas of infectious disease (e.g. sexually transmitted diseases) have experienced or will experience in the future due to testing technology shifts.
This page links to presentations that have been authorized to be posted on this Web site. Duplication is not authorized without the express written permission of the authors.
Culture Independent Diagnostics Forum Summary
Wednesday, April 25
Welcome to the Forum - Dr. Rima Khabbaz, CDC
Forum Overview - Dr. John Besser
Panel 1 Sessions - Outbreak Detection and Investigation
- Moderated by Dr. Rob Tauxe, CDC
Foodborne Disease Outbreak Detection and Investigation Impacts
- Dr. Ian Williams, CDC
Public Health Impacts on Non-Foodborne Diseases
- Dr. Joanne Bartkus, Minnesota Department of Health
Toxin-based Surveillance of Shiga Toxin-producing E. coli Infection—The German Experience
- Dr. Dirk Werber, Robert Koch Institute
Panel 2 Sessions - Burden/Attribution/Trends
- Moderated by Dr. Elaine Scallan, University of Colorado - Denver
Sporadic Enteric Disease—We are the 90%: Reducing the Burden of Disease in a Culture-independent World
- Dr. Rajal Mody, CDC
Surveillance for Antimicrobial Resistance in the Absence of Culture
- Dr. Jean Patel, CDC
Pathogen Testing in a Public Health Setting: FSIS Perspective
- Dr. David Goldman, USDA/FSIS
The Importance of Cultures in FDA’s Regulatory Science Program
- Dr. Eric Brown, FDA-CFSAN
Panel 3 Sessions - Stakeholder Perspectives
- Moderated by Dr. Hugh Maguire, Colorado Department of Public Health
A Physician’s Perspective
- Dr. Marguerite Neill, Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island
A Clinical Laboratory Perspective: Patient Benefit vs. Public Good
- Dr. Vicki Baselski, University of Tennessee Health Science Center
PCR, EIA, and MALDI: Oh My!!
- Dr. Robyn Atkinson, Utah Unified State Laboratories
The ‘Culture’ of Forensic Science: Application of Microbiological Culture to Forensic Attribution
- Dr. Douglas Anders, FBI Hazardous Materials Science Response Unit
The Regulatory Food Safety Laboratory Perspective on Culture Independent Diagnostic Assays
- Dan Rice, NY State Department of Agriculture & Markets
The Consumer Advocacy Perspective
- Dr. Barbara Kowalcyk, Center for Foodborne Illness Research & Prevention
Panel 4 Sessions - Scientific, Legal, and Regulatory Perspectives
- Moderated by Dr. Eric Brown, FDA-CFSAN
Charting a Path for Public Health – Where is Technology At? Where is it Going?
- Dr. Nancy Miller, Boston Medical Center
Current State of Metagenomics: Diarrhea
- Dr. Colin Stine, University of Maryland
Food Enforcement Perspectives
- Ms. Priya Rathnam, FDA-CFSAN
Clearance/Approval of Diagnostic Devices: Warnings/Limitations in a Package Insert
- Dr. Uwe Scherf, FDA-CDRH
Thursday, April 26
Breakout Group A: Regulatory and Device Industry Strategies
- Moderated by Patricia Griffin
Breakout Group B: Clinical and Public Health Practice
- Moderated by Raj Mody
Breakout Group C: Strategies 1—Culture-independent pathogen characterization assay development (strain, virulence, susceptibility, etc.)
- Moderated by Efrain Ribot and Patti Fields
Breakout Group D: Strategies 2—Culture-independent pathogen characterization assay development (strain, virulence, susceptibility, etc.) plus strategies for susceptibility surveillance
- Moderated by Barbara Mahon and Eric Brown
Group E: Novel approaches, known but unproven technologies or processes
- Moderated by Joanne Bartkus and Peter Gerner-Smidt
For more information contact, Kristy Kubota, MPH Senior Specialist, PulseNet Program, 240.485.2720, kristy.kubota@aphl.org