Three laboratory organizations have released a new resource to help laboratories prepare for specimens from patients who may have viral hemorrhagic fevers, including Ebola disease.
The Association of Public Health Laboratories developed the document in collaboration with the American Society for Microbiology and the College of American Pathologists. The resource compiles biosafety considerations intended to support laboratory readiness and response.
Preparedness begins before a suspected specimen arrives
Viral hemorrhagic fever preparedness affects more than the laboratory personnel who perform specialized testing. A patient may initially present at a facility where clinicians do not yet recognize the potential infection, meaning clinical laboratories need protocols for identifying, isolating, handling, and referring higher-risk specimens.
For lab managers, preparation requires coordination across the laboratory, infection prevention, emergency management, occupational health, clinical teams, and public health authorities. Procedures should identify who receives notification of a suspected case, which routine tests can be performed safely, when testing should stop, and where specimens should be referred.
Managers also need to align their response with the laboratory’s facilities and equipment. Risk assessments should account for specimen collection and transport, centrifugation, analyzer use, decontamination, waste, spills, and potential staff exposures. The controls required for a particular activity depend on the specimen, procedure, equipment, and likelihood of generating droplets or aerosols.
Training must translate plans into action
A written plan has limited value if staff cannot find or apply it during an urgent situation. Laboratory leaders should incorporate the response into competency assessments, drills, and interdisciplinary exercises. Training should cover appropriate PPE, safe use of biological safety cabinets, packaging and shipping requirements, exposure reporting, and communication with the laboratory’s leadership and external authorities.
Exercises can also reveal operational gaps that are easy to miss during document review. These can include outdated contact lists, unclear decision authority, insufficient spill supplies, uncertainty about specimen routing, or incompatible expectations between the laboratory and emergency department.
The new resource gives managers an opportunity to compare current procedures against recommendations from three organizations representing public health, microbiology, and pathology laboratories. Any resulting revisions should move through the laboratory’s document-control and change-management processes so staff receive updated training and obsolete instructions leave circulation.
Laboratories do not need to perform definitive viral hemorrhagic fever testing to play a critical role in preparedness. They do need a workable plan for recognizing elevated risk, protecting staff, supporting essential patient testing, and coordinating the specimen’s next steps. Periodic review can keep that plan aligned with staffing, equipment, referral pathways, and current guidance.
This article was created with the assistance of Generative AI and has undergone editorial review before publishing.
