Lab Matters Fall 2017 | Page 5

executive director ’ s message

I ’ m a summer kind of person . I love the warmth , the sand and the somewhat relaxed feeling we have at APHL once the Annual Meeting is over .

But this year the end of summer was marked by a very intense hurricane season , more so than in others of recent memory . Harvey walloped Houston and coastal Texas , then Irma bounced through the US Virgin Islands and the surrounding Caribbean basin before impacting Florida . Finally , Maria hit the USVI with a one-two punch and rolled over Puerto Rico with catastrophic effects . APHL stood up our incident command structure to assist members in the affected regions , share information and provide the federal government with some situational awareness . Now we look to the rebuilding process and have sent an assessment team to San Juan . Our thoughts and prayers go out to our members and all the others suffering through the long process of response and recovery , and then to rebuilding lives and their institutions .

In the fall , things pick up at APHL . Along with the usual harbingers such as apple cider , pumpkins , leaf peeping and football games , it ’ s meeting season , which gets me “ out and about ” for many opportunities to visit with members . In September , APHL held the Newborn Screening and Genetics Symposium in New Orleans . We had hundreds of participants including members from 45 newborn screening programs . I also met with our corporate members from Perkin Elmer to thank them in person for their many contributions to APHL . I took home some wonderful memories of New Orleans , but sadly I also took home the flu ( I didn ’ t get my influenza vaccination early enough ).

Luckily , I rebounded quickly enough to attend a meeting on US biosecurity hosted by the National Security Staff at the White House . Now THAT was a meeting ! I was honored to represent the public health laboratory community on such a critical issue of national security — biosecurity both here and abroad .

Next up were APHL ’ s fall committee meetings . I love to learn what ’ s going on in member labs so we can synthesize that into APHL strategy for member services and programs . So far we ’ ve hosted finance , food safety , global health , lab systems and standards , knowledge management , environmental health , and environmental laboratory science . But I also attended meetings in Geneva and Lyon with WHO to cement agreements on a Global Laboratory Leadership Program , then was back in Silver Spring for three days of leadership meetings including the annual corporate leadership council , the council of chairs , and the APHL Board meeting , where we established a new strategic map for APHL .

In early November I was on the West Coast for the California Association of Public Health Laboratory Directors meeting in San Luis Obispo immediately followed by the InFORM Conference in Garden Grove . I was happy to have our president Ewa King join me for those meetings where we met members from local labs in California and food safetyfocused members from across the country . In late November , APHL will bring together all APHL field staff based on the

In late November , APHL will bring together many APHL field staff based on the African continent for a week-long series of training and meetings in Johannesburg .”

– Scott Becker , MS

African continent for a week-long series of training and meetings in Johannesburg . I do get to be home for three days before I leave for what I expect is the final trip of the year and that ’ s to Nashville for the Southeast Regional Collaborators meeting , one of the regional meetings supported through the ELC program at CDC . I haven ’ t had the opportunity to meet with members in the southeast for a very long time . Also , I ’ m really looking forward to experiencing the barbeque in Nashville !

My travel schedule has been packed , but it ’ s been exhilarating to visit our members where they live and work . I remain very thankful and proud to be member of such a close-knit community of professionals . I ’ m also thankful for a little “ at home ” time before we jump into 2018 . ■