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CDNA Subcommittees

Public Health Laboratory Network (PHLN)

Brief summary including goals and objectives

The Public Health Laboratory Network (PHLN) is a collaborative group of laboratory representatives.   The aim of the PHLN is to provide strategic advice and share expertise at the national level in order to enhance the national capacity for the laboratory based detection and surveillance of agents and vectors of communicable diseases in Australia.   This is achieved by the sharing of knowledge and expertise within the PHLN, consultation with other laboratories, organisations and individuals with specialised expertise and communication with other public and private laboratories in the jurisdictions.

The PHLN Terms of Reference are:

1. Establish, maintain and expand collaborative links between pathology laboratories that have a public health focus (including veterinary pathology that has human impact).
2. Promote best practice in all disciplines of public health laboratory practice/microbiology.
3. Improve nationwide access to a comprehensive range of laboratory services for control of communicable diseases.
4. Work collaboratively with and provide strategic advice to the Communicable Disease Network Australia (CDNA) and the National Public Health Partnership (NPHP) to ensure optimal use of laboratory resources for communicable disease surveillance, and during outbreaks of national importance.
5. Build on the existing capacity of public health laboratories to respond to communicable disease outbreaks and newly emerging infectious diseases.
6. Respond to matters relating to public health microbiology, as referred by NPHP.
7. These TOR will be fulfilled to the best of our ability within resources available to support these activities.

Committee Representation

PHLN members are active on a broad range of public health microbiology committees where they can raise the profile of, and offer information and advice on behalf of PHLN.

In addition, PHLN is formally represented on a number of committees including:

•  National Tuberculosis Advisory Committee (NTAC)
•  National Influenza Pandemic Action Committee (NIPAC)

PHLN also has close linkages with a number of committees and networks including:

•   Intergovernmental Committee on HIV, AIDS and Related    Diseases (IGCHARD)
•   National Arbovirus and Malaria Advisory Committee (NAMAC)
•   National Neisseria Network (NNN)

Secretariat

               Mrs Cindy Heitel

               Public Health Laboratory Network

               MDP 14

               Department of Health and Ageing

               GPO Box 9848

               CANBERRA    ACT    2601

               Telephone : +61 2 6289 7401

               Facsimile : +61 2 6289 3677

               E-mail : PHLN@health.gov.au

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