Appendix 41

Appendix 41

Laboratory Surge Capacity - Australian Approach

Jef M. Hammond, L.G. Gleeson, P.W. Daniels and M. Jeggo Australian Animal Health Laboratory, Geelong, Victoria, Australia

Introduction: Australia has been free of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) since 1872, and has strong quarantine measures in place to ensure continued freedom. However, the 2001 outbreak in the United Kingdom and European Union highlighted the need to be well prepared for the threat of a major disease outbreak. In September 2002, the Council of Australian Governments held a major simulation of an FMD outbreak (exercise Minotaur) to test Australia's whole of government framework of preparedness, response and recovery in the face of this scenario. In June 2004, a second exercise (Crucible) was carried out to test the readiness of the National laboratory network and its ability to interact with the Australian Animal Health Laboratory (AAHL), which has a primary function to confirm a suspect case of FMD through exclusion diagnosis.

Materials and Methods: States or Territories were hypothetically ‘infected’ and responded at a decision-making level, including activating Local Disease Control Centres and State Disease Control Headquarters. ‘Disease-free’ States and Territories were also involved in response activities such as animal surveillance, responding to the economic and social consequences of closed international markets and cross-border transport and trade issues.

Results: As a result of these exercises a number of changes have been made to the way in which Australia will deal with an outbreak. AAHL has undergone some major changes and improvements in its platform capabilities to support FMD diagnosis and surveillance. The establishment of an emergency response plan, the introduction of a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) and robotic sample handling are all being instigated, along with a variety of testing options including high-throughput PCR screening. The emergency response plan incorporates the preparation of job cards for key staff roles to be carried out during an outbreak, the training of staff in these roles and the establishment and maintenance of a staff skills database. In addition, the levels of on-site laboratory support services that will be required during an outbreak have also been reviewed and a laboratory supplies database is to be developed. Continual improvements in the capacity of AAHL to rapidly diagnose FMD, such as, by the introduction of robot liquid handling devices to generate both high-throughput ELISA and molecular based real time PCR data linked to LIMS software, has added significantly to Australia’s FMD preparedness capacity. Further, as a direct outcome of the need for an immediate and comprehensive response to an outbreak, a new dedicated laboratory suite at AAHL has been designed and construction is soon to commence.

Discussion: Significant changes have been made to the way in which Australia will deal with an FMD outbreak. FMD outbreak simulation exercises helped to clarify those issues which would be of major importance during an outbreak. Alongside this, major progress in the ability of AAHL to respond rapidly and specifically to an FMD outbreak has significantly added to the level of Australia’s FMD preparedness.