Public Health Leaders Honored by APHL

SILVER SPRING, MD--(Marketwired - Jun 4, 2013) -  The Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) is pleased to announce the winners of its annual awards for outstanding achievements in laboratory science, creative approaches to solving today's public health challenges and exemplary support of laboratories serving the public's health. Awardees were honored during a ceremony at the 2013 APHL Annual Meeting & Seventh Government Environmental Laboratory Conference in Raleigh, NC.

The following awards were presented:

Champion of the Public Health Laboratory - This award recognizes federal, state and local elected officials and executive branch employees who have recognized the importance of state and local governmental laboratories that perform testing of public health significance either through support of legislation or federal agency decisions. 

• Christopher Christie, Governor of the State of New Jersey

Presidential Award - The recipient is selected by the APHL president and given to individuals who have made significant contributions to the association's work to promote policies that strengthen governmental health laboratories. There are two recipients of the Presidential Award:

• Dr. Ernie Schoenfeld, senior advisor of the Public Health Leadership Program at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Laura Conn, associate director for informatics in the Public Health Surveillance and Informatics Program Office, in the Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Healthiest Laboratory Award - This award is given to member laboratories committed to safety, environmental process, environmental policy, and employee health and wellness. The 2013 winners are:

• First Place Winner: Utah Public Health Laboratory
• Runner-Up: Hawaii Laboratories Division
• Honorable Mention: Delaware Public Health Laboratory

Gold Standard in Public Health Laboratory Excellence - This award is given to an APHL member who makes or has made significant contributions to the advancement of public health laboratory science and/or practice. The 2013 winner is:

• Willie Andrews, laboratory operations director at the Virginia Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services

Silver Award - This new award is given to an APHL member who makes or has made significant contributions to the advancement of public health laboratory science and/or practice. The 2013 winner is:

• Dr. Michael Wichman, associate director of environmental health for the State Hygienic Laboratory at the University of Iowa.

Emerging Leader Award - This award honors an individual whose leadership has been instrumental in one or more advances in laboratory science, practice, management, policy or education within his or her first five to ten years in the profession. The 2013 winner is:

• Dr. Sanjib Bhattacharyya, deputy laboratory director at the City of Milwaukee Health Department

On the Front Line Award - This award honors an individual or organization outside of the association's membership who makes significant contributions to APHL, its membership and mission. The 2013 winner is:

• Desiree Mustaquim, surveillance epidemiologist with the Influenza Division at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Thomas E. Maxson Education, Training and Workforce Development Award - This award honors an APHL member who is a public health or clinical laboratory practitioner, trainer or educator who has made significant contributions to public health laboratory practice by creating, delivering or developing continuing education opportunities, programs, policies or practices for the laboratory community. The 2013 winner is:

• Dr. Maria Paz Carlos, chief of virology and immunology at the Maryland State Laboratory and a part-time faculty member at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health

Congratulations to all of the APHL award winners.

Photos of award recipients available upon request.

The Association of Public Health Laboratories is a national non-profit located in Silver Spring, MD, that is dedicated to working with members to strengthen governmental laboratories with a public health mandate. By promoting effective programs and public policy, APHL strives to provide public health laboratories with the resources and infrastructure needed to protect the health of US residents and to prevent and control disease globally.