What does the spread of COVID-19 mean for PTB’s International Cooperation Department and what challenges do we have to face? Effective immediately, the International Cooperation Department will be providing answers to these questions on a specially designed website: www.covid19.ptb.de. The ongoing spread of Sars-CoV-2 has left its mark throughout the world. The social and economic…
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Measuring the Impact of Quality Infrastructure “The screen is yours…” At other times, the introduction of a speaker at a global conference would be very different. But in these times of COVID-19, we have to get creative – which is exactly what the Innovation Growth Lab did in transforming its Global Conference 2020 into a…
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Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, infrared thermometers have been in high demand throughout the world. These thermometers allow a person’s temperature to be taken contact-free and can provide an initial indication of whether they may have a COVID-19 infection. This is essential especially in places with a high concentration of people such as…
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The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrates that health systems in many countries – developed and developing – were not prepared for such a crisis. Since 2005, several organisations have warned about the consequences of pandemics, issuing recommendations to prepare for critical health situations (WHO 2005, World Economic Forum 2006). However, in many countries few of these recommendations…
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How can we prevent the spread of Covid-19 — especially in crowded places where people are queueing while they wait to buy chai, dhal curry or other food? This challenge moved health authorities in Sri Lanka to join forces with local business support organizations and international partners. In June and July, PTB’s partner organizations, the…
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Among the many challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic is the question of ensuring the quantity and at the same time the quality of protective masks, which are one among many types of protective equipment currently flooding the markets. The PTB Regional Consultancy Fund Quality Infrastructure (SEE QI Fund) responded to a spontaneous request from…
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What are the proper procedures for face masks? It is essential to use face masks properly in order to achieve the greatest possible protection. Wash hands thoroughly, at least 20-30 seconds and with soap before putting on the face mask. When putting on the face mask, make sure that the nose and mouth areas including…
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On 3 July in Ghent, Belgium, our esteemed colleague Philippe Dengler passed away following a severe illness. For many years, Philippe Dengler supported our work in North and sub-Saharan Africa as well as in Southeast Asia as an expert working intermittently and on a short-term basis. Of German heritage and born in Nancy, France, he…
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PTB’s droplet digital PCR has what it takes to become a reference method to monitor the quality of medical analytical laboratories. Scientists of the Berlin Institute of the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) have adapted the innovative method of droplet digital PCR to detect SARS-CoV-2 and have applied it successfully within the scope of an international…
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Emergency aid to COVID-19 testing facilities in the Palestinian territories A call for help from the Ministry of Health of the Palestinian National Authority reached PTB at the end of March: Laboratory analytics to test for coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 are lacking. In the project called “Supporting the national quality infrastructure” which has been implemented in the…
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