The BCCDC Public Health Laboratory is the primary public health and reference diagnostic testing facility for British Columbia.
We provide laboratory testing and results analyses as well as consultative and interpretative services for clinical and environmental infectious diseases. Our work is accomplished in a quality-assured, accredited framework with a robust biosafety and biosecurity program. We support and work closely within our public health networks with our local to international partners.
Our laboratory program areas include:
- Bacteriology and Mycology
- Biosafety, Biosecurity, Biohazard Containment
- Environmental Microbiology
- High Volume Serology
- Molecular Microbiology and Genomics
- Mycobacteriology/Tuberculosis (TB)
- Parasitology
- Provincial Toxicology Centre
- Virology
- Zoonotic Diseases and Emerging Pathogens
The BCCDC Public Health Laboratory is provincially mandated to carry out internationally benchmarked core functions for public health laboratories.
- Communicable disease surveillance prevention and control
- Outbreak and emergency response to communicable diseases
- Environmental health and food safety
- Reference, specialized and diagnostic testing
- Biosafety and Containment Level 3 programs
- Integrated communicable disease data management
- Public health policy development and evaluation
- Laboratory improvement and regulation (Quality Assurance)
- Training and education of health care and public health works
- Public health related research
Laboratory Services – test requisition forms, test kit ordering, provider change requests
eLab Handbook – test ordering procedures, processing information, specimen collection instructions, handling and transport instructions
Laboratory Trends newsletter – articles on interesting case reports or topics, recent surveillance findings and outbreaks, and news from the BCCDC Public Health Laboratory
