CLN Daily 2026
The term “shots not taken” has traditionally been associated with a famous quote from former professional hockey player, Wayne Gretzky, as an analogy for missed opportunities. Today, however, the words hit differently amid a public-health crisis driven by declining vaccination rates and the resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases. For Benjamin Bradley, MD, PhD, these challenges present an opportunity to strengthen collaborations between clinical and public-health laboratories to better serve patients and communities.
Bradley serves as the head of clinical operations for infectious diseases at ARUP Laboratories and an assistant professor of pathology at the University of Utah. In the Wednesday session, “The shot not taken: Dangers of declining vaccination rates and impacts to the lab,” he and two other speakers will explore the evolving testing landscape for vaccine-preventable diseases. The session will examine how laboratorians can navigate this increasingly complex ecosystem and define their roles and responsibilities as certain previously eliminated diseases re-emerge.
“Historically, testing for emerging and re-emerging diseases has been the responsibility of public-health laboratories,” said Bradley. “As these diseases become more common, testing needs to be more of a shared responsibility between public-health and clinical laboratories.”
He pointed out that advances in diagnostic technology have made this type of collaboration more feasible than ever. High-throughput molecular diagnostics, open- channel instrumentation, and the growing commercial availability of reagents for emerging pathogens have expanded clinical labs’ ability to participate in testing efforts that were once largely confined to public-health laboratories.
The overarching goal of the session is to give attendees a comprehensive understanding of the testing ecosystem and the unique contributions of each stakeholder within it.
The first speaker will be Denver Niles, MD, D(ABMM), a pediatrician at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, Texas. He will offer the perspective of a frontline clinician, discussing the challenges of evaluating and managing pediatric patients with suspected vaccine-preventable diseases in today’s healthcare environment.
Next, Bradley will draw on his experience leading the implementation of vaccine-preventable disease testing at ARUP, one of the nation’s largest reference laboratories. He will discuss how both reference and hospital-based laboratories can more effectively engage in testing and support patient care.
Anthony Tran, DrPH, D(ABMM), MT (ASCP), director of the state public-health laboratory for the California Department of Health, will provide insight into the public-health response to vaccine-preventable diseases. In this concluding presentation, Tran will discuss strategies for how public-health agencies and clinical microbiology laboratories can collaborate effectively to address the crisis.
Regardless of practice setting, clinical laboratories play a critical role in protecting public health.
As Bradley emphasized: “Even laboratories with no means of testing need to understand the landscape of testing so they can navigate it appropriately.” This may involve facilitating send-out testing, advising clinicians on appropriate test selection, or serving as a source of expertise when questions arise.
He believes that every laboratory has a responsibility to remain engaged. “We have an increasing role in this space, and we all need to be proactively involved,” Bradley said. “Regardless of where a patient seeks care, they all deserve the same access to testing and expertise.”
With that vision in mind, the speakers have designed a session that will equip attendees with practical knowledge and a broader understanding of how clinical and public-health laboratories can work together to address the challenges posed by declining vaccination rates. Join them to learn where your laboratory fits within this ecosystem and how you can improve public health!