[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 77 (Thursday, April 23, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E390-E391]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 THANKING THE UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO MEDICAL CENTER MOLECULAR SPECIALISTS

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                           HON. MARCY KAPTUR

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 23, 2020

  Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of the tireless 
efforts our caregivers and healthcare professionals are exciting 
patriotically to combat coronavirus. Those on the frontlines are 
bravely caring for sick patients. Those behind the scenes are working 
to find a vaccine or expand testing of the virus. Today in particular, 
on a day when Congress has recommended to pass additional legislation 
to heal our nation and unlock the mystery of COVID-19, I want to 
recognize the seven female molecular specialists at the University of 
Toledo Medical Center who have been instrumental in bringing in-house 
testing capabilities to our city and Northwest Ohio: Heather

[[Page E391]]

Byrd, Michelle Lewandowski, Nicole Ortiz, Heather Kvale, Holly Mohon, 
Shauna Rasor, and Ji-Youn Yeo.
  Not many hospitals have a molecular department, but UTMC does. Thanks 
to the work of these highly trained women specialists, and the UTMC lab 
capabilities, COVID-19 testing was made available for our entire region 
and results dropped from an 8 day wait period to just 48 hours. And the 
lab is poised to invent even better results with the research funds 
Congress has passed.
  These swift test results have had a priceless impact on the lives of 
people in our community. Quick test results help us identify sick 
patients, get them the care they need, and prevent further spread. 
Their work brings our community great pride in their accomplishments at 
the precious labs of UTMC. I will continue to support their efforts at 
UTMC as the country works to ratchet up production and make widespread 
testing more available.
  In the difficult circumstances Americans find ourselves in, hope must 
not be forgotten. The rays of hope we see in our researchers and 
caregivers' dedication to heal and find solutions to this virus serve 
as a reminder of the resiliency of our community and the strength of 
America as a whole in an interdependent world. Today, America thanks 
you--the Toledo Rocket women of science--who helped bring testing to 
our region. To quote Abraham Lincoln--you are ``the better angels of 
our nature.''

                     [From the Blade, Apr. 1, 2020]

  How UTMC Specialists Worked Swiftly To Bring Coronavirus Testing to 
                                  Area

                         (By Brooks Sutherland)

       Around the same time the United States reported its first 
     case of coronavirus, molecular specialists at the University 
     of Toledo Medical Center had already begun discussions to 
     bring in-house testing capabilities to its pathology lab.
       It was that foresight that paved the way for coronavirus 
     testing capabilities at UTMC, the former Medical College of 
     Ohio hospital, under a U.S. Food and Drug Administration 
     Emergency Use Authorization, to sprout in just weeks.
       Testing in Lucas County previously took up to eight days 
     for results to finalize even as concerns around the global 
     pandemic continued to heighten and the number of confirmed 
     cases skyrocketed nationwide.
       But today, the lab at UTMC can test up to 180 samples a day 
     and returns take 48 hours or less. That quick turnaround is 
     possible thanks to efforts from molecular specialists such as 
     Ji-Youn Yeo and Heather Kvale and a handful of others at 
     UTMC, according to Cynthia O'Connell, the administrative 
     director of the medical center's pathology lab.
       ``We have a molecular department, and not many hospitals 
     do,'' she said. ``So we have a lot of specialists and they 
     worked tirelessly to make this happen.''
       Understanding its impact during a health crisis, Ms. Kvale 
     added: ``We really wanted to bring this in house, so it would 
     reduce the turnaround time for our patients.''
       ``I'm really glad that we're able to decrease that time so 
     that people don't sit there in limbo,'' she said.
       But in order to bring testing capability to UTMC, the 
     molecular diagnostics specialists had to validate a testing 
     kit to show it was accurately providing results. Thankfully, 
     the lab was already equipped with the correct machine and the 
     kit before they became in short supply.
       In order to validate testing, lab workers collaborated with 
     Beaumont Health, which is based in Royal Oak, Mich., and the 
     Ohio Department of Health to gather known positive and 
     negative specimens which were in turn used to test accuracy.
       Ms. Yeo's expertise in molecular genetics then helped the 
     lab modify the test to keep employees safe during the 
     process, Ms. Kvale said. But that modification then had to be 
     validated, she said.
       ``She's really brilliant,'' Ms. O'Connell added of Ms. Yeo.
       Ms. Yeo declined to be interviewed, but in a prepared 
     statement said members of the pathology team ``worked fast 
     together,'' to put all the pieces in place to bring testing 
     to northwest Ohio.
       Dr. James Willey, a UT professor who specializes in 
     pulmonary medicine, said Ms. Yeo trained and performed her 
     thesis in his National Institutes of Health-funded lab, where 
     she learned lots of unique skill sets.
       ``I'm proud of all those guys,'' he said. ``This is really 
     important.''
       Dr. Thomas Blomquist, deputy coroner at the Lucas County 
     Coroner's Office, helped set up the molecular diagnostics lab 
     and hired Ms. Kvale and Ms. Yeo. He said the two ``deserve a 
     ton of credit,'' and said he was proud that the specialists 
     were able to fend off any challenges that stood in the way of 
     bringing testing to the area.
       ``Molecular testing is really critical for society,'' he 
     said. ``It allows people to have quick results so they can be 
     quarantined as quick as possible to prevent the spread. This 
     is going to have a huge impact.''

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