Prepared Together: Public Health Collaboration in Response to a Botulism Outbreak
Virtual
Monday, June 29, 2026
4:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Eastern Standard Time
Laboratory capability is an important aspect of public health emergency preparedness and response. Effective lab testing is critical to successfully detect and understand different public health threats during public health emergencies. Join ASTHO and APHL in this webinar highlighting health agencies coordinate with public health laboratories can coordinate to support emergency response.
This webinar will highlight how California coordinated across departments in response to a recent botulism outbreak related to infant formula. This emergency represents an intersection of several areas of public health and will share perspectives from staff in several different roles in California. Participants will hear lessons learned about collaboration from this real-world response.
Objectives:
- Demonstrate ways public health emergency preparedness staff and public health laboratories can collaborate using an example of recent emergency response efforts.
- Highlight the value of public health emergency preparedness as a cross-cutting area of public health.
- Summarize lessons learned from California’s recent botulism outbreak.
Speakers:
- Shari Shea, MHS, MT(ASCP), Director, Food Safety Programs, Association of Public Health Laboratories
- Tricia Blocher, M.S., Deputy Director, Public Health Emergency Preparedness, California Department of Public Health
- Dr. Jessica Khouri, MD, Senior Medical Officer, Infant Botulism Treatment and Prevention Program, California Department of Public Health
- Anthony Tran, DrPH, MPH, D(ABMM), MT(ASCP), Director, State Public Health Laboratory, California Department of Public Health