Pooling strategy: A solution for mass population screening of SARS-CoV-2
A rapid, cheap, and reliable pooling strategy for screening of SARS-CoV-2 maximizes available testing kits and resources in the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pathology sits at the cusp of basic and clinical sciences. This unique position allows us to contribute in an important and meaningful manner to clinical care through the provision of timely and accurate diagnoses as well as laboratory testing results. At the same time, investigative approaches within the department seek to further define our understanding of disease processes, paving the way for therapeutic interventions.
The Department embraces the tripartite mission of the Medical College of Georgia i.e. clinical service, education, and research. The Department of Pathology (Anatomic and Clinical Pathology) has 22 clinical faculty, including 2 members based at the Athens Campus, and 6 research faculty. Clinical services are delivered primarily to AU Medical Center's 478 bed adult hospital and the 154 bed Children’s Hospital of Georgia.
The Department also operates Georgia Esoteric Molecular Laboratory, an independently licensed and CLIA certified reference laboratory, which provides esoteric molecular testing and pathology consultation services for hospitals and physicians. Approximately 1.3 million clinical laboratory procedures and 13,500 surgical specimens are processed annually. With specialty trained experts in almost every area of anatomic and clinical pathology, we provide diagnostic and consultative services, facilitating key clinical decisions.
As academic faculty, we shoulder the responsibility to provide a learning experience
for students and residents that will catapult them into the professional arena as
well-trained, knowledgeable, inquiring medical graduates and competent, compassionate,
intellectually mature physicians. The Department plays a key role in the education
of medical students with maximal interactions during the Phase 2. No longer a ‘stand
alone’ course, instruction in Pathology is fully integrated as part of the Cellular
and Systems Disease States in concert with medical microbiology and pharmacology.
The Department also offers a number of electives for 3rd and 4th year students. The
Graduate Medical Education program includes 12 residents and 2 fellows. Trainees participate
in all activities within the Department, obtaining requisite competencies through
graduated responsibilities as they progress towards their career goal of becoming
competent diagnosticians and independent pathologists, whether in an academic or community
practice.
The Department of Pathology’s faculty received approximately $10 million in NIH funding
primarily through investigators in Augusta University's Center for Biotechnology and
Genomic Medicine (CBGM) and the Cancer Center. These and other faculty, who maintain
primary academic appointments within the Department of Pathology, substantially enhance
the department’s research endeavor. Our clinical faculty are also engaged in correlative
and translational research, providing opportunities for medical student and residents.
Additionally the Department also serves as a central repository for a statewide network,
the BioRepository Alliance of Georgia for Oncology (BRAG-Onc). BRAG-Onc currently
consists of eleven contributing institutions in Georgia, with MCG as its leading and
coordinating hub.
The Department of Pathology at Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University thus plays a key role in education and research while providing vital diagnostic and clinical consultative services throughout the state. I invite you to explore other areas of this website, or come and visit us to get a firsthand look at our department and meet with our faculty, staff, and trainees.
Dr. Han-Feng Ding gets 2.1 Million NIH grant.
GEORGIA ESOTERIC AND MOLECULAR LABORATORY, LLC AT AUGUSTA UNIVERSITY
The Georgia Esoteric and Molecular laboratory has established the Pathology Research Services that prepares and stains animal and human tissue for your basic and clinical research.
Department of Pathology
Health Sciences Campus
706-721-2923
706-721-2358
1120 15th Street, BF 104, Augusta, GA 30912
A rapid, cheap, and reliable pooling strategy for screening of SARS-CoV-2 maximizes available testing kits and resources in the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We want patients and physicians in our community to have timely access to information that will ultimately benefit us all by helping limit spread of the virus,” says Dr. Ravindra Kolhe, director of the GEM Lab.
About 10% of patients who come to complex care hospitals may have low levels of folate and other indicators of malnutrition, investigators say.
Ninety percent of both STAT and routine tests are now being done in 45 minutes or less at AU Health System, reducing the overall need to order labs STAT.