**Knowledge Integration to Support Networking for Laboratory Preparedness and Response to Emerging Pathogens**

Shamir N. Mukhi1, Lai King Ng1, Theodore I. Kuschak1 and May Chu2 *1Public Health Agency of Canada 2Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 1Canada 2United States of America* 

#### **1. Introduction**

212 New Research on Knowledge Management Technology

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**10. References** 

Laboratories play a critical role in facilitating timely recognition of and response to public health threats. However, capabilities and capacities vary widely among laboratories around the world. The scientific community recognizes that: 1) no single laboratory or network can effectively cover all health hazard threats and 2) connecting laboratories through networks enables scientific communities to harness and contribute their expertise in response to public health threats, while adding value and enhancing opportunities to enrich their own work. However, a consolidated and accessible inventory of laboratories that would enable this to happen does not exist.

Public health laboratories serve the essential function of identifying etiologic agents of disease in an accurate and timely manner. However, the practicality and potential of these laboratories in the detection, monitoring, and reporting of threats over a wider geographic range is limited by unclear case definitions, inadequate laboratory capacity, and often, limited political will of local authorities to comply with International Health Regulations (IHR) 2005 (Baker and Fidler, 2006) to be prepared to respond to public health emergencies of international concern (PHEIC). Furthermore, some countries are not member states of World Health Organization (WHO) and therefore have no obligation to comply with IHR.

Global, regional, and national laboratory networks serve to alleviate these issues by streamlining the detection, monitoring, and reporting procedures for communicable diseases in order to effectively and significantly reduce the global or regional burden of disease. Laboratory networks are useful in establishing and maintaining standards such as molecular disease confirmation by providing member laboratories with standardized testing and reporting procedures, reagents, equipment, training, reference materials, quality control indicators, and technical support. Such collaboration between and among laboratories facilitated by networks allows for rapid and accurate provision of information regarding the magnitude of disease and the strains that are circulating in particular regions, leading to faster response and more effective control of the threat. Some example networks include the Global Polio Network (Hull et al, 1997) and the Global Measles and Rubella Network (Featherstone et al, 2003).

Knowledge Integration to Support Networking for

Fig. 1. Global Laboratory Directory Vision

components: GLaD*Map*, GLaD*Resource* and GLaD*Support*.

experience and knowledge.

Laboratory Preparedness and Response to Emerging Pathogens 215

important to sustain laboratory networks that could serve as irreplaceable repositories of

The WHO, the National Microbiology Laboratory, Public Health Agency of Canada and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, USA collaborated on developing the Global Laboratory Directory (GLaD) to map, connect, and support the laboratory networks and their members. GLaD is conceived as a support system to encourage laboratory networks to be part of a global community of peers. It is to connect laboratories among and between networks to leverage their capabilities and capacities in support of effective preparedness and in compliance with the IHR. GLaD, as depicted in Fig. 1, comprises of three main

It is easy to undervalue laboratories as assets for health protection and to question the need for investment into them and their existence. Moreover, the power of networking as a means of achieving public health goals is not always explored or harnessed. GLaD aims to support

Although significant scientific knowledge has been developed, tested and translated into successful public health interventions and leading to reduced infectious disease burden, the public remains vulnerable to epidemics and pandemics. Emerging infections such as HIV, SARS, avian influenza and the recent H1N1 pandemic are further exemplified by the emergence and global spread of multi-drug resistant pathogens, which threatens our ability to treat viral and bacterial infections in hospitals and in the community. Taken together these acts of nature have put enormous pressure on governments to act quickly to protect the public's health. The public have in turn, incurred high costs in terms of lives and implementation of countermeasures. These public health problems have resulted in society disturbance, economic loss and political expectations.
