Table 5.
Pathways forward—moving public health to points of need.
| Action base | Impact |
|---|---|
| Accreditation requirements (root cause of deficiencies) | • Add instruction in POCT to CEPH curriculum and degree requirements for SPHs and PHPs • Systematically inspect class contents to fill gaps in root cause deficiencies |
| Board certification content | • Integrate POC concepts in the NBPHE CPH examination • Assess understanding of the principles and practice of POCT • Check recall of basics of interpreting POC test results • Establish competence in POC isolation laboratory design • Support essentials of the POC public health curriculum • Document POC preparedness for outbreaks and epidemics • Confirm understanding of disaster POC and personnel logistics |
| CDC | • Use online training and study documents on POCT |
| Community resilience | • Lead the design and organization of isolation laboratories, POC device selection, personnel coordination, and alternate care facilities • Train staff to use personal protective equipment (PPE) and to operate POC devices while wearing PPE • Archive public health skill sets and plans for immediate access during disasters, crises, epidemics, and outbreaks |
| Experience abroad | • Seek internships and training in foreign countries in need of rapid response medical decision making, especially limited-resource nations |
| GAO | • Study reports on molecular diagnostics, infectious diseases, and POC diagnostics, and on their relationships to national need and impact |
| IFCC POCT Task Force | • Make use of educational documents and focused symposia found at http://www.ifcc.org/ifcc-education-division/emd-committees/taskforcepoct/poctresources/ |
| Literature | • Use PubMed to locate, then read literature on POCT |
| NAS | • Study documents on bioterrorism and threat detection |
| NIH | • “Grand Challenge” for POC devices that detect antimicrobial resistance (NIAID, BARDA), POC technologies centers (NIBIB), and other point-of-need awards |
| Online training and boot camps | • Obtain individual AACC certifications in basic and clinical POCT • Obtain certificates or board certification by online examination • Enroll in “boot camps” for the POC Coordinator's perspective |
| Outreach | • Participate in community health fairs that promote self-testing for diabetes, HIV, pregnancy, and other communicable and non-communicable diseases |
| Promotion of public health schools | • Advertise training in POCT, PPE, isolation laboratories, and community-based POC diagnostics as a calling cards to attract learners to public health schools and programs |
| Public health books | • Include content on POCT and specialized applications, such as POCT for complex emergencies, disasters, and epidemics |
| Public health journals | • Fill the gaps in editorial leadership by recognizing the importance and impact of POCT for community response and resilience • Create a dialogue in public health journals globally with editorials, examples of implementations, and training cases • Organize feature issues of journals that focus on POCT |
| Special interest groups | • Form regional clubs, host POC speakers, and engage online webinars for sessions broadcast to the public health student body and local forums of practitioners |
| Vision | • Move public health to points of need using POCT |
| Whitehat Communications | • Participate in POC Coordinator webinars, live and archived (see https://www.whitehatcom.com/POC_Group_Webinars_2018.htm) |
| YouTube | • Learn from online lectures, such as the POCT•CTR series of presentations at https://www.youtube.com/user/POCTCTR |
AACC, American Association for Clinical Chemistry; AJPH, American Journal of Public Health; BARDA, Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority; CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; CEPH, Council on Education for Public Health; CPH, Certified Public Health; GAO, Government Accountability Office; NAS, National Academy of Science; NBPHE, National Board of Public Health Examiners; NIAID, National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases; NIBIB, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering; NIH, National Institutes of Health; IFCC, International Federation for Clinical Chemistry; and POCT•CTR™, Point-of-care Testing Center for Teaching and Research.