Last data update: May 13, 2024. (Total: 46773 publications since 2009)
Records 1-7 (of 7 Records) |
Query Trace: Ridderhof J[original query] |
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Regional Consortia : A Framework for Public Health Laboratory Collaboration and Service Sharing.
Ned-Sykes RM , Pentella M , Kurimski L , Zanto S , Matt Charles E , Bean C , Gibson D , Breckenridge K , Su B , Ridderhof J . Public Health Rep 2021 137 (2) 333549211002774 Public health laboratories (PHLs) provide specialized testing services for programs focused on the prevention and control of communicable diseases, early detection of congenital disorders, testing for antimicrobial resistance, and identification of environmental contaminants, among other responsibilities. Although national public health programs and partners provide some funding support, training, and technical resources to PHLs, no dedicated funding is provided from federal programs to fully support comprehensive PHL services across the United States or the underlying infrastructure needed for PHLs to provide and ensure their core functions and capabilities. Public health laboratories have begun to rely on a "community of practice" approach to addressing various service needs by creating and formalizing regional consortia, which are organized groups of geographically clustered PHLs that share expertise, capacities, and capabilities to enhance PHL services. The number of states participating in these networks increased from 13 to 48 from 2015 to 2020, including participation by multiple local PHLs and a territorial PHL. These consortia have enabled strengthening of partnerships and collaboration among PHLs to address regional priorities and challenges. We explore the background and evolution of regional consortia, outline some of their practices and activities, review lessons learned from these successful collaborations, and discuss the positive effect they have on the national public health system. |
Sputum smear microscopy in the Xpert ® MTB/RIF era.
Van Deun A , Tahseen S , Affolabi D , Hossain MA , Joloba ML , Angra PK , Ridderhof JC , de Jong BC , Rieder HL . Int J Tuberc Lung Dis 2018 23 (1) 12-18 A balanced perspective is advocated for the assessment and application of the most recent and the oldest diagnostic methods for pulmonary tuberculosis (TB)—the molecular Xpert(®) MTB/RIF assay and microscopy for acid-fast bacilli. We discuss their respective merits and shortcomings and identify threats that may hamper their use in TB control. Neither test on its own provides all the information needed for diagnosis and treatment monitoring. Considering all aspects important for both individual patient care and disease control, neither seems ‘better' than the other. The required advancement of microscopy had already been hampered before the introduction of the GeneXpert technology by unsuccessful and probably misguided attempts to decentralise culture-based diagnosis and drug susceptibility testing. It seems evident that systematic replacement of microscopy by Xpert is not a viable option for the foreseeable future. Instead, the two methods should complement each other to arrive at a comprehensive, accessible and continuous service for a maximum number of patients. This will intrinsically prioritise targeting the most potent transmitters with the worst prognosis, simultaneously offering optimised prospects for efficient TB control. New microscopy and Xpert applications are expected to ultimately make control programmes independent of culture-based methods in diagnosis, treatment monitoring and outcome assessment. |
Critical gaps in laboratory leadership to meet global health security goals
Albetkova A , Isadore J , Ridderhof J , Ned-Sykes R , Maryogo-Robinson L , Blank E , Cognat S , Dolmazon V , Gasquet P , Rayfield M , Peruski L . Bull World Health Organ 2017 95 (8) 547-547a Public health laboratories play a critical role in the detection, prevention and control of diseases. However, reliable laboratory testing continues to be limited in many low- and middle-income countries.1 The 2013–2016 Ebola virus disease outbreak in West Africa provided many examples of how functioning laboratories were needed for disease control and prevention efforts.2 This outbreak highlighted the need for laboratory directors to be able to influence national laboratory policy and to implement national laboratory strategic plans.3,4 Global health initiatives such as The United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (2003),5 the International Health Regulations (IHR; 2005),6 the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA; 2014)5 and the health-related United Nations sustainable development goal (SDG 3) of the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development (2015),7 all emphasize the need for laboratory systems capable of providing affordable, sustainable and quality laboratory testing. However, despite progress made, only 22% (42/193) of countries reported meeting the IHR core capacities’ requirements for surveillance and response by the June 2012 target date and 34% (65/193) by the November 2015 target date.5,6 The GHSA was launched in 2014 to accelerate progress towards global health preparedness and to support capacity-building efforts. The GHSA objectives and IHR’s core capacities overlap in several areas, including laboratory systems and workforce development.5 | The GHSA Workforce Development Action Package8 outlines the need for rigorous and sustainable training programmes for public health professionals and emphasizes the need for practical, hands-on experience to support public health systems. Ideally, such programmes would help the public health laboratory workforce in gaining the skills and expertise to navigate an often-chaotic environment.9 |
Read the new microscopy handbook: even the Ziehl-Neelsen technique has changed
Angra P , Ridderhof J , Tahseen S , Van Deun A . Int J Tuberc Lung Dis 2016 20 (4) 567 The recent publication in this Journal by Das et al. highlighted the Ziehl-Neelsen (ZN) staining method currently in use around the world.1 We would like to point out that the authors have referenced and used an older recommended concentration of carbol fuchsin, 0.3%, as the comparative method, although the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union) and partners revised the recommended concentration of carbol fuchsin to 1% after much deliberation,2 taking into account comparisons with different concentrations of stains.3 The authors’ use of the previously recommended lower concentration of carbol fuchsin may have caused bias, as the currently recommended 1% concentration has been shown to be more reliable, in particular improving sensitivity. | As microscopy is still the primary diagnostic tool for tuberculosis (TB), with an estimated 83 million smears performed for diagnosis each year, most using the ZN staining method, it is important to reiterate the recommended method and the fuchsin concentration.4 To provide some background, the original stain concentration was mentioned as 1% carbol fuchsin.5–7 The visualisation of acid-fast bacilli (AFB) by the ZN staining method is primarily dependent upon the quality of the basic fuchsin, and questions about the concentration and quality of fuchsin in country settings led to the above-mentioned studies optimising the fuchsin concentration for ZN. A detailed explanation of the recommended use of 1% hot carbol fuchsin was also provided in the 2007 counterpoint.2 The recent Global Laboratory Initiative (GLI) publication also recommends use of 1% carbol fuchsin concentration.8 |
Competency Guidelines for Public Health Laboratory Professionals: CDC and the Association of Public Health Laboratories.
Ned-Sykes R , Johnson C , Ridderhof JC , Perlman E , Pollock A , DeBoy JM . MMWR Suppl 2015 64 (1) 1-81 These competency guidelines outline the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary for public health laboratory (PHL) professionals to deliver the core services of PHLs efficiently and effectively. As part of a 2-year workforce project sponsored in 2012 by CDC and the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), competencies for 15 domain areas were developed by experts representing state and local PHLs, clinical laboratories, academic institutions, laboratory professional organizations, CDC, and APHL. The competencies were developed and reviewed by approximately 170 subject matter experts with diverse backgrounds and experiences in laboratory science and public health. The guidelines comprise general, cross-cutting, and specialized domain areas and are divided into four levels of proficiency: beginner, competent, proficient, and expert. The 15 domain areas are 1) Quality Management System, 2) Ethics, 3) Management and Leadership, 4) Communication, 5) Security, 6) Emergency Management and Response, 7) Workforce Training, 8) General Laboratory Practice, 9) Safety, 10) Surveillance, 11) Informatics, 12) Microbiology, 13) Chemistry, 14) Bioinformatics, and 15) Research. These competency guidelines are targeted to scientists working in PHLs, defined as governmental public health, environmental, and agricultural laboratories that provide analytic biological and/or chemical testing and testing-related services that protect human populations against infectious diseases, foodborne and waterborne diseases, environmental hazards, treatable hereditary disorders, and natural and human-made public health emergencies. The competencies support certain PHL workforce needs such as identifying job responsibilities, assessing individual performance, and providing a guiding framework for producing education and training programs. Although these competencies were developed specifically for the PHL community, this does not preclude their broader application to other professionals in a variety of different work settings. |
Global laboratory initiative tool for a stepwise process towards tuberculosis laboratory accreditation
Datema TA , Oskam L , Engelberts MF , van Beers SM , Shinnick TM , Baker M , Ridderhof JC , Scholten J , van Deun A , Gilpin C , Klatser PR . Int J Tuberc Lung Dis 2012 16 (5) 704-5 Quality laboratory services are essential for high quality, cost-effective health care. The need to use a laboratory systems approach, focusing on quality management systems (QMS) and accreditation standards, | is now well recognized,1 as it can provide vital information for proper planning and utilization of health | resources, which is critical in resource-limited settings. Accreditation also provides the credibility necessary to assure program investments in laboratory | strengthening. | The Global Laboratory Initiative (GLI) of the Stop | TB Partnership has developed a tool to assist laboratories in implementing a QMS that meets ISO15189 | Medical Laboratory–Requirements for Quality and | Competence, the most widely used standard for laboratory accreditation. This standard defi nes the requirements for a laboratory QMS, but provides no | guidance on how to implement processes and procedures to meet these requirements. |
Performance of tuberculosis drug susceptibility testing in the United States laboratories from 1994-2008
Angra PK , Taylor TH , Iademarco MF , Metchock B , Astles JR , Ridderhof JC . J Clin Microbiol 2012 50 (4) 1233-9 We present a statistical summary of results from the Model Performance Evaluation Program (MPEP) for Mycobacterium tuberculosis Drug Susceptibility Testing, 1994-2008 implemented by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). During that period, a total of 57,733 test results for culture isolates were reported by 216 participating laboratories for the first-line anti-tuberculosis drugs used in the United States- isoniazid (INH), rifampin (RMP), ethambutol (EMB), and pyrazinamide (PZA). Using Clinical Laboratory and Standards Institute (CLSI) recommended concentrations for one or more of three methods, agar proportion (AP), BACTEC460 (BACTEC), and MGIT-960 (MGIT), yielded overall agreement of 97.0% for first-line drugs. For susceptible strains, agreement was 98.4%; for resistant strains, agreement was 91.0%, with significantly lower accuracy (Chi-sq p<0.0001). For resistant strains, overall agreement by methods was: AP 91.3%; BACTEC 93.0%; and MGIT 82.6% and by drugs was: INH 92.2%; RMP 91.5%; EMB 79.0%; and PZA 97.5%. For some strains, performance by method varied significantly. Use of duplicate strains in the same shipment and repeat strains over time, revealed consistent performance even for strains with higher levels of inter-laboratory discordance. No overall differences in performance between laboratories were observed based on volume of testing or type of facility (e.g., health department, hospital, independent). By all methods, decreased performance was observed for strains with low-level INH resistance, RMP resistance, and EMB-resistant strains. These results demonstrate a high level of performance in detection of drug resistant M. tuberculosis in U.S. laboratories. |
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