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Strategic Plan

Mission

The Subcommittee on Animal Health Laboratory Standards (SCAHLS) seeks to ensure market access for terrestrial and aquatic animals and animal products through the application of world’s best practice in animal health laboratories, especially for emergency animal disease diagnosis and management.

Primary goal

To facilitate the networking of government, private and university and industry terrestrial and aquatic animal health laboratories and to establish, implement and monitor professional and technical standards within these laboratories. To provide advice and leadership for action on the most effective means of emergency animal disease detection and surveillance using laboratory testing.

Primary Strategy

SCAHLS seeks to achieve its objectives by the adoption of world’s best practice for animal health laboratories. The primary strategy is effective early detection of emergency animal diseases and efficient post-emergency surveillance.

Environmental Issues

Major environmental issues facing the Network include:

  • Changing jurisdictional priorities
  • Variability in institutional resourcing
  • Reduction in key sources of funding
  • Biosecurity and biosafety standards
  • Supply of animal health specialist diagnosticians 
  • International animal export market
  • Maintenance of discipline excellence

Business Standards

The Australian and New Zealand Animal Health Laboratory Network seeks to maintain quality systems accreditation consistent with the established international standard "ISO/IEC 17025 General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories", amongst animal health laboratories servicing Australia's and New Zealand's animal industries.

Key Stakeholders

  • State & Commonwealth Government laboratories and committees
  • Private laboratories
  • University laboratories
  • Industry laboratories
  • Industry Groups
  • Associated professions and organisations.

Key animal health issues to be addressed

  • Australia's and New Zealand's preparedness for emergency disease incursions
  • Regional exotic disease testing capacity
  • Changing international expectations
  • Major international disease outbreaks
  • Interstate specimen transportation
  • World-wide shortage of animal health specialist diagnosticians 
  • Disease reporting by livestock owners

Goals

Networked preparedness and response for emergency animal diseases (EAD) 

  • Develop and maintain a laboratory network for rapid and effective responses to the major EADs

Biosafety and biosecurity awareness

  • Promote biosafety and biosecurity by recommending minimum requirements for the laboratory diagnosis of animal diseases, including zoonotic diseases, and the associated handling of diagnostic specimens.

Effective communications 

  • To engage stakeholders and to inform, consult, involve and empower participants and animal health laboratories to meet strategic objectives.

National Animal Health Objectives 

  • Promote linkages between the network and the National Animal Health Laboratory Strategy (NAHLS), the National Animal Health Surveillance Strategy (NAHSS) and the National Animal Health Information System (NAHIS).

Reference Laboratories 

  • To nominate and monitor Australian national reference laboratories for specific diseases or supporting national programs.

Quality Assurance

  • Establish and maintain the Australian National Quality Assurance Program (ANQAP) for specified tests of importance to the laboratory network.

Skills 

  • Maintain professional and technical skills through appropriate training programs.

New Tests

  • Maintain a program to encourage and facilitate new test development and evalutation.

Strategies

  1. LEADDR including LIMS and STARS (Working Group Chair - AAHL)

  • Develop and maintain a laboratory network for the rapid laboratory responses to the major EADs 
  • Develop and maintain a laboratory network response capacity to a major animal disease outbreak
  • Ensure the effective transfer of appropriate diagnostic assays for EADs from AAHL to State, university, private and industry laboratories where applicable
  • Ensure an appropriate training program to assist the technology transfer of the above technologies to participating network laboratories
  • Maintain a nationally co-ordinated quality assurance program for the laboratory diagnosis of EADs
  • Evaluate new tests developed by AAHL for the diagnosis of EADs
  • Facilitate the conduct of periodical EAD simulations by network laboratories and provide a forum for discussion and improvement of national EAD responsiveness
  • Facilitate the establishment of a nationally compatible laboratory information management system for an EAD response

   2. Biosafety and Biosecurity (Working Group Chair – AAHL)

  • Promote biosafety in laboratories by recommending minimum OHS&E requirements for SOPs relating to the laboratory diagnosis of animal diseases, including zoonotic diseases, and the associated handling of diagnostic specimens
  • Promote biosecurity in laboratories by agreeing minimum requirements for SOPs for the handling of diagnostic specimens from suspected emergency animal diseases, including standards for the construction and management of the capability for their physical containment, and any associated laboratory testing of such specimens

   3. Communications (Working Group Chair - NSW)

  • Ensure the Network website has current information related to its activities and links to related organizations
  • Issue a Newsletter containing topical material after each SCAHLS meeting
  • Provide technical advice to Animal Health Committee including a report of each Network meeting
  • Increase stakeholder awareness of all Network activities
  • Develop a system that facilitates the provision of feedback from stakeholders

   4. National Objectives (NAHLS/KPI/Syndrome Reporting) (Working Group Chair - BA)

  • Support the development of and participate in the NAHL Strategy and associated Work Plan
  • Promote linkages between SCAHLS and the National Animal Health Surveillance Strategy (NAHSS) and assist in making laboratory data available to the National Animal Health Information System (NAHIS)
  • Facilitate the adoption of Syndrome Reporting from all laboratories to add value to current NAHIS information

    5. Reference Laboratories (Working Group Chair - WA/VIC)

  • Develop and maintain a recognised system of reference laboratories to service high priority national animal health programs or diseases
  • Compile and approve annual reports received from SCAHLS designated and OIE/FAO/WHO reference laboratories
  • Identify and advertise special tests, skills and expertise available within the laboratory network

   6. Quality Assurance (Working Group Chair - VIC)

  • Complete annual phases of ANQAP testing
  • Introduce serological and other tests into ANQAP as required (including those for aquatic species)
  • Maintain a cost effective, equitable and relevant program
  • ANQAP will provide a relevant program such that all participating veterinary laboratories undertaking export testing can maintain NATA accreditation (or equivalent) 
  • Further develop QA proficiency programs to incorporate disciplines other than serology

   7. Skills (AAPSP) AADDTI (Working Group Chair - Gribbles)

  • Maintain and improve competence and capability of veterinary pathologists in Australian and New Zealand laboratories through a program of proficiency testing, continuing education and training support in veterinary diagnostic pathology (Australian Animal Pathology Standards Program – AAPSP)
  • Organise and promote seminars and workshops to foster national consistency in the application and implementation of test protocols
  • Organise and promote technical workshops, conferences and seminars on issues relevant to animal health testing and to use these to expedite development or dissemination of test methodologies

   8. New Test Evaluation (Working Group Chair - NT)

  • Maintain a register of new test methods being developed, to reduce duplication
  • Promote the establishment of collaborative links between institutions
  • Develop and provide information on validation requirements for test inclusion in ANZSDPs including validation templates and guidelines for authors
  • Manage a peer-review evaluation system for new tests, especially those intended for inclusion in ANZSDPs

   9. ANZSDP (Working Group Chair - TAS)

  • Review existing Australian Standard Diagnostic Techniques (ASDTs) and prepare and publish new ANZSDPs where appropriate
  • Harmonise the ANZSDPs with the OIE Manual of Standards for Diagnostic Tests and Vaccines where appropriate
  • Maintain the currency of the ANZSDPs on an ongoing bassis

  10. Point of Care Tests (Working Group Chair - IDEXX)