Implementing a Y-Screening/Direct-to-DNA Workflow
You will learn about:
- The FBU's journey through workflow development, validation and implementation
- How to triage processing of SAK samples
- Logistical details for incorporating this workflow in your own laboratory
Summary
In preparation for eventual “test-all” legislation for processing sexual assault kits, the Forensic Biology Unit at the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office (FBU) began the quest for a solution to increase casework handling capacity, without increasing staff. The FBU validated a Y-screening workflow that could take samples directly to DNA amplification. DNA quantitation helped to triage samples and improve processing efficiency by determining which samples to take further, to re-extract, or to terminate processing.
Speaker
Julie Conover Sikorsky, MS, ABC-MB
Forensic Biology Manager
Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office
Julie Conover Sikorsky currently manages the Forensic Biology Unit of the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office where she’s worked for the past eighteen and a half years. She began her career in 2002 as a Senior Forensic Scientist after graduating with a B.S. in molecular biology from the University of California at San Diego and two master’s degrees from Marshall University, one in Forensic Science and the other in Biomedical Sciences. Julie is certified in molecular biology through the ABC and also has a Lean Six Sigma Greenbelt.