Laboratories

Expected outcome under APSED III

Public health laboratory system is able to rapidly, accurately and safely identify infectious and non-infectious hazards in order to contribute to health security.

Key elements of the focus area

• Laboratories have the capacity to diagnose and report priority diseases in both laboratory and field setting (i.e. location of outbreak), as well as perform antimicrobial susceptibility testing.
• Data from laboratories are used routinely in surveillance and risk assessment.
• New diagnostic technologies are reviewed for their applicability in the local context.
• Ongoing internal and external assessments and exercises assess functionality, identify gaps and inform corrective actions.
• Laboratories are connected nationally, internationally and across sectors in a referral network.