Pitch: Benjamin Pinsky, MD, PhD, FCAP, is an assistant professor of Pathology and of Medicine (Infectious Diseases) at the Stanford University School of Medicine, California. He is also the medical director of the Clinical Virology Laboratory for Stanford Health Care and Stanford Children’s Health. He is available to address questions, including:
•How is Ebola diagnosed?•What precautions are U.S. laboratories implementing to ensure the safety of the public and hospital staff?•What is the role of the pathologist in diagnosing Ebola?•How do pathologists help ensure public safety? Pathologists are physicians who examine body fluids, cells, and tissues to identify and diagnose disease, including infectious diseases, such as Ebola. Pathologists also serve as medical laboratory directors and work with public health officials to alert them of an infectious disease outbreak to help safeguard the public’s safety.
Quote:“As a pathologist, I diagnose infectious diseases, such as Ebola,” said Dr. Benjamin Pinsky, MD, PhD, FCAP, an assistant professor of Pathology and of Medicine (Infectious Diseases) at Stanford University School of Medicine, California and Medical Director of the Clinical Virology Laboratory for Stanford Health Care and Stanford Children’s Health. “I know that accurate diagnosis of Ebola is an important safeguard to protect the public’s health. If a case of Ebola is suspected, I would work with the primary clinical team, local infection control and prevention, and public health authorities to ensure optimal patient care and the safety of the public and hospital staff.”
About Dr. Benjamin PinskyDr. Pinsky received an undergraduate degree in biochemistry from Harvard University before entering the Medical Scientist Training Program at the University of Washington School of Medicine, where he earned both an MD and PhD. He completed Clinical Pathology residency at Stanford, with clinical microbiology and virology training under the mentorship of Drs. Ellen Jo Baron and Niaz Banaei.
Dr. Pinsky provided key laboratory expertise and leadership during the 2009 influenza pandemic. His research involves the development and evaluation of diagnostic tests for infectious diseases of global health importance, including other viral hemorrhagic fevers, such as dengue. This work has allowed Dr. Pinsky to travel extensively to laboratories throughout the world, most recently to Zimbabwe in Southern Africa.
He received the Pan American Society for Clinical Virology Young Investigator award in 2013 as well as the American Society for Microbiology Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics Young Investigator Award in 2014.
About the College of American PathologistsAs the leading organization with more than 18,000 board-certified pathologists, the College of American Pathologists (CAP) serves patients, pathologists, and the public by fostering and advocating excellence in the practice of pathology and laboratory medicine worldwide. The CAP’s Laboratory Improvement Programs, initiated 65 years ago, currently has customers in more than 100 countries, accrediting 7,600 laboratories and providing proficiency testing to 20,000 laboratories worldwide. Find more information about the CAP at cap.org. Follow CAP on Twitter: @pathologists.
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