Enhancing Hospital Surveillance and Rapid Diagnostics of Critical Pathogens Through Metagenomics Sequencing

Event Description

ESCMID Foundation Course

Rapid diagnostics and surveillance of critical pathogens in the hospital is essential for patient treatment and hospital outbreak detection. This three-day course on “Improving rapid diagnostics and surveillance of critical pathogens in the hospital” planned for October 2025 will combine foundational knowledge, practical skills, and expert insights. Day 1 introduces the field of hospital diagnostics with real-world applications of current and new diagnostic methods, with a special emphasis on clinical metagenomics. Day 2 presents the current methods used for hospital surveillance and how the field is developing real-time applications. The final day focuses on applying and practising these skills to clinical diagnostics and outbreak investigations using metagenomics, culminating in group presentations. Designed for clinical microbiologists, this course offers a blend of theory and practice, equipping participants with the skills to apply metagenomics to their own clinical setting.

Intended audience:

Clinical Microbiologists, Infectious Diseases Specialists, Public Health Specialists and Bioinformaticians who would like an Introduction and an update on how to use metagenomics in routine clinical microbiology.

Objectives:

• Explain the relevance of metagenomics for clinical diagnosis and hospital surveillance.
• Apply different metagenomics methods for clinical purposes.
• Implement a bioinformatics strategy for the analysis, integration, and visualization of metagenomics data for diagnostic purposes or investigating an outbreak.
• Identify strengths, challenges, and priorities in rapid diagnostics and surveillance specific to each participant’s work context.

Course coordinator:

Natacha Couto, University of Oxford
John W. Rossen, University Medical Center Groningen
Sandra Reuter, Medical Center University of Freiburg 
 

Organisers:

University Medical Center Groningen
ESGEM - Epidemiological Markers
ESGMD - Genomic and Molecular Diagnostic

Accreditation:

The ESCMID Education team will apply for accreditation to the European Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (EACCME®).

   Each participant can only receive the number of credits according to actual participation in the event and upon completion of the feedback survey.

Certification:

Course organisers will monitor attendance. Only participants attending live sessions will be able to receive the certification.

Course Venue:

University Medical Center Groningen
Hanzeplein 1, 9713 GZ Groningen
Netherlands

Accommodation:

Not Included

Downloads

• Programme

Registration Fees

The onsite registration fee includes access to the sessions, access to online training material and resources, CME accreditation, 1 meal per day and coffee breaks, and a practical session (day 3).

The online registration fee includes access to the sessions, access to online training materials and resources and CME accreditation.

The ESCMID Attendance Grant does not cover travel and accommodation expenses.