From the air we breathe, to the water we drink, to the soil that we walk on, staff at the State Hygienic Laboratory (SHL) at the University of Iowa, in partnership with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, have a hand in monitoring the health of Iowa’s precious natural resources. “Our staff scientists are very hands-on in our mission to collect and analyze samples,” said Michael Schueller...

On a frigid morning in mid-January, tiny flurries swirled outside the University of Iowa State Hygienic Lab building as an unusual sight, an eighteen-wheeler UPS semi-truck, slowly backed up to the loading dock with a daily delivery of samples. Inside the truck was a record-breaking haul: fifty-five 4’ x 4’ bags containing COVID-19 test kits from Iowans across the state. Each bag contained...

The State Hygienic Laboratory at the University of Iowa (SHL) is cross-training staff and operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week to meet testing demands. Since March, the scientists and administrators at the SHL have overcome numerous challenges to provide rapid, high-volume testing to slow the spread of COVID-19 in Iowa. The lab needed to rapidly ramp up its staffing, navigate shifting...