Rapid Point-of-Care Technologies for Infectious Diseases &
Use of Wastewater Monitoring for Harm Reduction Strategies
Overview:
C.E.C. Analytics has a mission to support the public health of communities across Canada through the use of wastewater, detecting emerging targets such as infectious diseases and substances of potential abuse. As a technology disruptor in the field of wastewater surveillance, C.E.C.’s community-focused approach is breaking down previous barriers to ensure any community or business has the option to implement their technology. As new infectious diseases and emerging drug poisoning agents arise within communities, the need for early detection methods are critical to identify localized outbreaks and implementation of harm reduction strategies.
As a leader in long-term wastewater monitoring solutions, C.E.C.’s proven process is simple, cost-effective and easy to implement in a variety of environments. It allows clients to leverage the knowledge found in their wastewater and develop proactive decisions to protect the communities.
This webinar will focus on a number of important topics:
- Learnings from last 3 years of wastewater monitoring
- Case studies that demonstrate how sampling is feasible as an early warning detection for senior care homes, schools, hospitals, military, remote campsites, municipalities, indigenous communities, commercial real estate properties and more.
- Advancements in Point-of-Care and Sampling technologies.
- Expanding of public health targets for current wastewater monitoring programs.
Host:
Kathy Vassilakos
OMWA Director
Kathy Vassilakos is a Director and Past Vice-President of the OMWA involved with projects including expansion of OMWA activities to On-the-Job Training and Industry-specific Information webinars, promotion of Covid-19 Wastewater Surveillance, and co-authoring an OMWA position paper on the removal of lead from drinking water. Kathy has a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Toronto and has worked in biotechnology as a project leader and consultant. Kathy is Chair of the steering committee for the Stratford Welcomes Refugees community project which supported the sponsorship of several families in response to the Syrian refugee crisis. Recent re-launch of the project to create a more pro-active approach to community building through ongoing refugee sponsorship
Speaker:
Paul Westlund, Ph.D
Founder, C.E.C Analytics
Paul Westlund, Ph.D., is a water treatment specialist with in-depth experience in tracking and monitoring contaminants of emerging concern, including illicit drugs, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and industrial contaminants. Over the last decade he has developed analytical techniques and sampling technologies that have been key to understanding the presence and persistence of contaminants in urban wastewater and receiving environment.
Paul is the founder of C.E.C. Analytics and has developed a patented sampler technology that can be used to effectively monitor infectious diseases and substances of potential abuse in wastewater. He leads a team of scientists and engineers that support wastewater-based epidemiology projects across Canada, Europe, Asia and USA, with a focus on monitoring rural communities and high-risk facilities.