Implementation of pathogen genomics in clinical microbiology laboratories

Abstract

Pathogen genomics, including whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and clinical metagenomics, is a transformative technology increasingly being implemented in clinical microbiology, including in hospital laboratories. Pathogen genomics can improve the control of healthcare-associated infections, provide rapid infection diagnosis, and could enable replacement of laborious microbiology tests. To date, real-world implementation of pathogen genome sequencing has primarily been limited to public health laboratories, but sequencing in the clinical microbiology setting has the potential to provide advantages, including turnaround time and ability to focus on local priorities. In this review, we consider th..