Molecular Epidemiologist Joins Cepheid to Head Healthcare-Associated Infection Consortium Program

SUNNYVALE, Calif. -- Cepheid announces the appointment of leading molecular epidemiologist and expert on healthcare-associated infections, Fred Tenover, PhD, as senior director of scientific affairs. Tenover will serve as a liaison with the infection control community and will lead Cepheid's Healthcare Associated Infection (HAI) Consortium program.

"The objective of the Cepheid HAI Consortium is to establish global connections between hospital laboratories and leading academic laboratories in order to track evolving drug resistance patterns, virulence determinants, and the emergence of new strains associated with specific HAIs,” said David H. Persing, MD, PhD, chief medical and technology officer at Cepheid. “The resulting information will be used in the design of rapid and definitive new tests for HAIs and for ensuring that Cepheid's leadership

position in this area is maintained and expanded. Tenover is a noted microbiologist and authority on HAI-associated organisms and as such, is uniquely qualified to head Cepheid's HAI Consortium Program. I am extremely pleased to welcome such an accomplished scientist to our team and look forward to Fred's contribution as we continue to expand and refine our menu of molecular tests in this important developing market."

Tenover currently holds the position of distinguished consultant and director of the Office of Antimicrobial Resistance at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In addition, Tenover is director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Global Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring, and also is adjunct professor in the Department of Epidemiology at Emory University School of Public Health.

"Finding effective treatment for the increasing number of multiple antibiotic-resistant HAIs has become a serious challenge for physicians not only in U.S. hospitals but around the world," said Tenover. "Providing physicians with the critical laboratory data they need to make decisions within a few hours instead of a few days will not only save lives but will help control the spread of infections in healthcare settings. I am delighted to have the opportunity to join forces with the distinguished team of scientists at Cepheid to confront the increasing burden of HAIs on human health."

Tenover is expected to join the Cepheid team in early October.

Source: Cepheid