Case study: design and implementation of training for scientists deploying to Ebola diagnostic field laboratories in Sierra Leone: October 2014 to February 2016

Abstract

As part of the UK response to the 2013-2016 Ebola virus disease (EVD) epidemic in West Africa, Public Health England (PHE) were tasked with establishing three field Ebola virus (EBOV) diagnostic laboratories in Sierra Leone by the UK Department for International Development (DFID). These provided diagnostic support to the Ebola Treatment Centre (ETC) facilities located in Kerry Town, Makeni and Port Loko. The Novel and Dangerous Pathogens (NADP) Training group at PHE, Porton Down, designed and implemented a pre-deployment Ebola diagnostic laboratory training programme for UK volunteer scientists being deployed to the PHE EVD laboratories. Here, we describe the training, workflow and capabilities of these field laboratories for use in response to disease epidemics and in epidemiological surveillance. We discuss the training outcomes, the laboratory outputs, lessons learned and the legacy value of the support provided. We hope this information will assist in the recruitment and training of staff for future responses and in the design and implementation of rapid deployment diagnostic field laboratories for future outbreaks of high consequence pathogens.This article is part of the themed issue 'The 2013-2016 West African Ebola epidemic: data, decision-making and disease control'.

Recent advances in the development and evaluation of molecular diagnostics for Ebola virus disease

“…These findings illustrate that classic molecular diagnostic developer's conundrum; no two assays ever perform exactly the same. These results point towards an improved sensitivity for the in-house Trombley assay, compared with the Altona assay, and indeed during the West Africa outbreak, the PHE mobile lab in Freetown switched from using the Altona assay to the Trombley assay due to 'performance issues' [56]. Similarly, other evaluations have identified probable false negatives using the RealStar® Screen assay [57,58].…”

Efficiency of Field Laboratories for Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak during Chronic Insecurity, Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2018–2020

“…To mitigate the risk for exposure, protect the safety of the laboratory workers, and prevent environmental contamination, EBOV-suspected samples must be handled in a Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) laboratory or BSL-3–like conditions (standard personal protective equipment [PPE], negative pressurized glove box, restricted access to the laboratory, laboratory staff trained and vaccinated) ( 10 , 11 ). Hence, deployment of BSL-3–like structures is needed at outbreak locations.…”

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