‘Community-wide kind of testing’: Wastewater testing monitors pathogens during College World Series
By Waverle Monro
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OMAHA (KETV) — The Douglas County Health Department is using wastewater surveillance to monitor pathogens and protect public health during the College World Series in Omaha.
Dr. Justin Frederick, Chief of Infectious Disease Epidemiology for the department, said the method is relatively new.
“I would say within the last year, two years, it’s very new,” Frederick said.
Frederick explained that wastewater testing involves collecting water from treatment facilities and sending it to a laboratory for analysis.
“It’s based on the wastewater treatment facilities; they collect the water and actually send it off to the laboratory for testing,” Frederick said.
The process works by detecting pathogens and illnesses shed in stool and urine, making it a community-wide test that can identify emerging infections.
“The way the wastewater surveillance works is that all of us can shed the pathogens and illnesses in stool and urine. It’s a community-wide kind of test, and it’s good to identify any emerging infections,” Frederick said.
Samples are taken from one of Omaha’s wastewater treatment facilities and sent to the Nebraska Public Health Lab for molecular testing.
“It’s a molecular test where it detects the genetic material of these viruses and bacteria,” Frederick said.
If a pathogen is detected, Frederick said health officials are alerted promptly.
“If we’ve identified it in the wastewater and we can warn our health care community, then it’s on their radar,” Frederick said.
Frederick emphasized the importance of this preventative work to ensure the College World Series remains a safe event for attendees.
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