07.06.2010 – The state laboratory Berlin-Brandenburg prepares around 1.25 million analyses and medical reports each year. It is the first state laboratory in Germany to receive external support: Dussmann Service is in charge of the incoming sample department, the central sterilization unit and courier services, so that everything ends up where it belongs.

 

“One day, we opened the door and almost fell over a horse« smiles Heidrun Roblick. Animals often appear on the long, steel table. Not in one piece generally but in a test tube. The laboratory assistant receives samples of blood, tissue, excrement, and cells. If the animal is delivered whole, it is most frequently a dead fox or a bird. But a grown horse is bigger than the system can deal with. »Of course, we did accept it« Roblick says calmly.

She works in the incoming sample department of the State Laboratory Berlin-Brandenburg. Here in Frankfurt (Oder), between tiled walls, freezers and disinfectant, Roblick and her colleagues receive hundreds of animal, food and soil samples each day.

Patient RBL6799

The incoming sample department is similar to a post office; Dussmann Service staff receive samples of all shapes and sizes there. The laboratory technicians record every detail and enter it into the computer system and the most important information is summarized in an alphanumerical code. RBL6799 refers to 200 ml of cow blood, which was taken the day before by veterinarian X who suspects disease and sent by courier. The code also reveals which laboratory veterinarian takes on the »patient«.

Sometimes, Heidrun Roblick and her colleagues have a maximum of 15 minutes to take incoming samples out of the refrigerated boxes, to check them, label them and pack them into the various freezing and refrigerator containers in accordance with quality standards. If the time is exceeded, tissue etc can spoil – particularly during the summer months.

Precision is the highest virtue during sample receipt. Inattention here cannot be corrected later in the laboratory – on the contrary: it distorts results. It can have consequences that go beyond the state boundaries as there is a fast warning system which informs all European authorities within a very short time if the result of an examination shows, for example, swine flu. In order to exclude errors, Dussmann Service employs laboratory technicians and assistants in the incoming sample department – like Heidrun Roblick who has worked in this profession for 30 years.

The state laboratory makes sure that there is a sufficient »supply« of new laboratory technicians. Each year, biological and chemical laboratory technicians, state certified food chemists, veterinarians and pharmacists are trained.

Help With Dead Canaries

Change of Scene. In Berlin, a few minutes away from the central train station, Prof. Dr. Roland Körber sits in his office. No tiles, no disinfectant, instead, carpeting and walls lined with built-in cupboards. Professor Körber is the director of the state laboratory Berlin-Brandenburg, one of the biggest in Germany. Founded in 2009 when the Brandenburg state laboratory and the Berlin Institute for Food, Medicine and Animal Diseases were merged, it is still a very new organization.

Each year, the institute deals with around 1.25 million analyses and reports of many different kinds: health, consumer, environmental and resource protection, veterinary medicine, agriculture and geology. Many experts, many areas of expertise and Prof. Körber heads them. He is a veterinarian himself. He sketches the tasks of his employees: »The majority of the work is, of course, in the laboratories where samples are examined and reports are prepared. Sometimes, if it is necessary and in cooperation with the authorities responsible, we work on location as an assessor, for example when a bakery is inspected for hygiene or the production of a cosmetics manufacturer is monitored. We also develop new methods of examination and analysis together with other specialists.«

There are around 500 members of staff at the state laboratory and it is one of the biggest employers in Berlin-Brandenburg. Both federal states contribute a proportion of the institute’s financial needs which is supervised by the department of the Berlin senate responsible for consumer protection and the Brandenburg ministry.

The state laboratory provides information and consumer advice, be it on swine flu, ice-cream, bird mortality or sun cream. Work is taken on from associations, business organizations and even private individuals, as long as state tasks take priority and are not disrupted: »If somebody wants his horse’s blood tested or to know why his canary died, then we can do that too.« It’s obvious that Körber is a veterinarian, he often illustrates his speech with examples from the animal world.

Cell Samples on Tour

But first, the canary needs to reach the in­com­ing department and Dussmann Service takes care of that too. The service provider takes on the role of Mercury in the form of courier services. In addition to the laboratories in Berlin and Frankfurt (Oder), research is carried out in Potsdam, Oranienburg and Kleinmachnow. In Berlin and Brandenburg there are also around 110 points to which authorities, veterinarians, far­mers and food retailers can deliver samples. The courier transport connects all of the locations with each other, collects samples and transports them to the appropriate laboratory.

To prevent samples spoiling in transit, Dussmann Service chauffeurs them cross-country in refrigerated transport vehicles. The service provider has made investment for the client and purchased seven of these new.

Refrigeration and freezing boxes fill the delivery vehicle, a temperature logger monitors the transport temperature which is inspected once a week. The freezer maintains a steady minus 18 degrees – pathological samples and perishable foods require icy temperatures.

In the incoming sample department, all of the boxes are meticulously labeled as are the test tubes. A mix-up must be prevented under all circumstances. Delays must also be avoided and as a consequence, traffic jams can endanger the precious freight. The driver keeps an ear to the traffic news at all times.

Anti-Virus Wash Program

Just as the incoming sample department marks the start of the tour through the state laboratories, the central sterilization unit marks the end. Many stairways away from the incoming sample department, Dussmann Service staff dispose sample remains surrounded by tiles and stainless steel.

Packaging material with traces of blood, urine or excrement is sterilized in a autoclave – a pressurized steamer – and disposed of. Test tubes, dissection tools, measuring beakers, pipettes etc. etc.: all laboratory equipment is placed in an over-dimensional wash machine which runs various wash programs, depending on the type of soiling – from agrarian to virological.

Success Through Cooperation

From the central sterilization unit, back to the Berlin office where Prof. Körber takes stock and reaches a positive conclusion: »Because we are the first state laboratory to cooperate with a private service provider, we are monitored more closely. Other states, and in particular, the authorities, regard our activities with a critical eye, but I believe that our success in regard to quali­ty and efficiency proves us right.«

Success through cooperation: the public-private partnership works and it works very well with Dussmann Service.

»You know, the incoming sample department is a particularly sensitive area. It was a huge step for us to outsource this service. Public-private partnership is not just a phrase, it was tremendously important to us that it really did function as a partnership from the very beginning.» Körber quickens his speech, the subject interests him. The merger made the state laboratory an institution under public law which allows more freedom of decision but this also means more responsibility. The first year of its existence promises to be a successful one.

In the meantime, the workday at the incoming sample department, Frankfurt has come to an end. All test tubes are labeled, cooled and entered into the computer system. The smell of disinfectant wafts through the rooms. Tomorrow morning, new samples will arrive on the steel tables, ready for microscopic examination.

 

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