Academic Pathology (May 2021)

The New York State SARS-CoV-2 Testing Consortium: Regional Communication in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic

  • James M. Crawford MD, PhD,
  • Maria E. Aguero-Rosenfeld MD,
  • Ioannis Aifantis PhD,
  • Evan M. Cadoff MD,
  • Joan F. Cangiarella MD,
  • Carlos Cordon-Cardo MD,
  • Melissa Cushing MD,
  • Aldolfo Firpo-Betancourt MD,
  • Amy S. Fox MD,
  • Yoko Furuya MD,
  • Sean Hacking MD,
  • Jeffrey Jhang MD,
  • Debra G. B. Leonard MD, PhD,
  • Jenny Libien MD, PhD,
  • Massimo Loda MD,
  • Damadora Rao Mendu MD,
  • Mark J. Mulligan MD,
  • Michel R. Nasr MD,
  • Nicole D. Pecora MD,
  • Melissa S. Pessin MD, PhD,
  • Michael B. Prystowsky MD, PhD,
  • Lakshmi V. Ramanathan PhD,
  • Kathleen R. Rauch BSN, RN,
  • Scott Riddell PhD,
  • Karen Roach MPH,
  • Kevin A. Roth MD, PhD,
  • Kenneth R. Shroyer MD, PhD,
  • Bruce R. Smoller MD,
  • Steven L. Spitalnik MD, PhD,
  • Eric D. Spitzer MD, PhD,
  • John E. Tomaszewski MD,
  • Susan Waltman Esq,
  • Loretta Willis BSN, RN, CPHQ, CCM,
  • Zeynep Sumer-King MS

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1177/23742895211006818
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8

Abstract

Read online

The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, created an unprecedented need for comprehensive laboratory testing of populations, in order to meet the needs of medical practice and to guide the management and functioning of our society. With the greater New York metropolitan area as an epicenter of this pandemic beginning in March 2020, a consortium of laboratory leaders from the assembled New York academic medical institutions was formed to help identify and solve the challenges of deploying testing. This report brings forward the experience of this consortium, based on the real-world challenges which we encountered in testing patients and in supporting the recovery effort to reestablish the health care workplace. In coordination with the Greater New York Hospital Association and with the public health laboratory of New York State, this consortium communicated with state leadership to help inform public decision-making addressing the crisis. Through the length of the pandemic, the consortium has been a critical mechanism for sharing experience and best practices in dealing with issues including the following: instrument platforms, sample sources, test performance, pre- and post-analytical issues, supply chain, institutional testing capacity, pooled testing, biospecimen science, and research. The consortium also has been a mechanism for staying abreast of state and municipal policies and initiatives, and their impact on institutional and laboratory operations. The experience of this consortium may be of value to current and future laboratory professionals and policy-makers alike, in dealing with major events that impact regional laboratory services.