A collaborative environment for public health

To accommodate new programs and an expansion of services, the State of Connecticut's new Public Health Laboratory provides a collaborative environment for the medical center, the department of public health, and many other groups – creating a cohesive public health community within an environment that balances technologically advanced building systems and equipment.

The laboratory conducts studies in epidemiology, salmonellosis, group A streptococcal infection, rucellosis, rabies, Lyme disease, Ehrlichia and West Nile virus, childhood lead poisoning prevention, maternal and child health, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis control, environmental health and pollutant control, and safe food and drinking water programs.

The facility also provides a full array of testing in both environmental and occupational chemistry and evaluates procedures developed by the Environmental Protection Agency, National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, and the Environmental Research Institute at the University of Connecticut, Storrs.

Currently operating with a staff of 128 full-time employees, the laboratory conducts over 350 types of tests, processes approximately 250,000 specimens, and performs over one million analyses annually.

Several additional programs were incorporated in the new building including genetics testing and molecular diagnostics, requiring the installation of tandem mass spectrometry equipment. With a new BSL-3 laboratory, the facility also functions as a rapid-response, bio-terrorism laboratory. Molecular diagnostics were expanded to other infectious disease areas such as virology and reference bacteriology, and new services are now offered for diagnostic and preventative health care for chronic diseases.