About us

Our History

Our Center has been in existence since 2007 when the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering created and funded the Point-of-Care Technologies Research Network (POCTRN) of which we are a member. POCTRN’s purpose is to drive the development of appropriate point-of-care diagnostic technologies through collaborative efforts that merge scientific and technological capabilities with clinical need.

Our Mission

To develop and test the accuracy, acceptability, and optimal implementation of point-of-care tests for sexually transmitted diseases in diverse care delivery contexts both in the United States and in resource-limited settings.

Our Vision

To decrease transmission of sexually transmitted diseases through rapid accessible diagnostic innovation.

Our Approach

We are working toward our vision by identifying promising emerging technologies and facilitating their translation along the development pipeline into clinical assessment and commercialization.

• We design and conduct integrated clinical needs assessments and health impact assessments with technology developers, clinicians, other medical professionals, end-users, and other appropriate stakeholders to advance the field of POC testing and to inform training curricula.
• We provide training to technology developers on clinical needs and health care delivery processes. This includes training for scientists in resource-poor settings and education of relevant stakeholders on the development and potential impact of POC technologies.
• We disseminate the results of our needs assessments, impact analyses, and technology developments through publications, presentations, public affairs, webinars, and training events.  
• We drive the development of POC STD technologies by providing consultations and feedback to developers and funding solicitation awards annually for further development of technology that has achieved proof of concept at the time of application.
• We conduct early, in-house clinical validation of promising technologies in various settings, including an emergency department, an adolescent health clinic, and a low-resource setting.
• We offer systems engineering assistance.