About Training and Workforce Development

Overview

The Division of Laboratory Services (DLS) provides leadership and support to enhance the U.S. laboratory workforce through initiatives that strengthen:

• Recruitment.
• Retention.
• Continuing education.
• Training.

DLS' training resources help laboratory and testing professionals in clinical and public health settings:

• Combat emerging threats.
• Stay current with the newest practices, standards, and technologies.

DLS also develops frameworks, models, and resources that support laboratory-related competencies for:

• Practicing laboratory professionals.
• Participants in laboratory fellowships and internships.

Our services

DLS develops and disseminates a growing inventory of free educational and training resources that help laboratories continually improve. This includes:

• eLearning and virtual reality courses.
• Training of trainers programs.
• Toolkits.
• Job aids.
• Webinars.
• Print materials.

DLS also:

• Supports a growing community of practice among laboratory professionals.
• Provides resources to partners on training and workforce development activities.
• Brings partners together to identify and address laboratory workforce issues at the national level.

OneLab initiative

• Bridge, train, and sustain a capacity-building community among laboratory professionals and testers to collectively support rapid, large-scale responses to public health emergencies.
• Assess OneLab Network members' training needs.
• Develop training materials and host webinars that address the training needs of:
  • Clinical and public health laboratory training and education professionals.
  • Professionals and volunteers who perform or coordinate testing at non-laboratory sites.

Training and educational materials

• Provide competency-building content across nearly 100 laboratory topics to help keep clinical and public health laboratory professionals proficient in areas such as:
  • Essential laboratory methodologies.
  • New test procedures.
  • Informatics.
  • Quality.
  • Safety.
• Apply instructional design support and knowledge of adult learning best practices to develop and assess effective training products to maintain a competent, prepared, and sustainable national laboratory workforce.
• Design innovative, comprehensive, and convenient training products including eLearning courses, training of trainers programs, and webinars focused on diagnostic testing, preparedness, informatics, quality, safety, and the packing and shipping of dangerous goods.
  
• Develop virtual reality training that allows laboratory professionals to apply, assess, and improve their skills in a safe and controlled learning environment.
• Develop job aids to assist clinical and public health laboratory professionals with diagnostic testing, preparedness, informatics, quality, safety, and the packing and shipping of dangerous goods.
• Fund partners to develop training and other resources to support the public health and clinical laboratory workforces.
• Evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of laboratory education and training, including measuring the outcomes of transferring knowledge and skills to improved laboratory practice.

Workforce development

• Recruit and retain a large, diverse laboratory workforce through competency-based internship and fellowship opportunities in state, local, and territorial public health laboratories in collaboration with the Association for Public Health Laboratories (APHL).
• Support the development, promotion, and adoption of competencies relevant to the laboratory workforce through implementation of laboratory competency guidelines.
• Provide leadership development opportunities for public health laboratory staff through collaboration with APHL.
• Engage in and fund partners to characterize the laboratory workforce and conduct research related to the workforce shortage.
• Fund partners to support the education of clinical and public health laboratory staff through scholarships.
• Collaborate with public health laboratory and clinical laboratory partners to assess workforce needs and develop a national workforce strategic plan.

Our impact

• Over 170,000 registrations per year for TWDB-related eLearning courses across CDC TRAIN, STEAM, and OneLab REACH
• Over 20,000 unique members across OneLab elements including OneLab Network, OneLab TEST, and OneLab REACH
• Over 180 training resources available on OneLab REACH with more to come
• Over 2,000 expected fellowship and internship opportunities by 2026 to expand the public health laboratory workforce pipeline through APHL-CDC's Career Pathways in Public Health Laboratory Science Program
• Over 3,200 learners completed the Ready? Set? Test! eLearning course on preparing and performing waived testing per year
• Over 23,000 P.A.C.E.® certificates awarded to clinical and public health laboratory professionals each year on average