Canada's COVID-19 testing system overwhelmed after slow move to new tests

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Canada's recent spike in COVID-19 cases has created day-long lines at testing centres and prolonged waits for results, highlighting gaps in a ...

People wait in line at the Women's College coronavirus disease testing facility in Toronto, Ontario, Canada Sep 18, 2020. TORONTO: Canada's recent spike in COVID-19 cases has created day-long lines at testing centres and prolonged waits for results, highlighting gaps in a system that leans heavily on traditional laboratory tests in a nation that has been slow to adopt newer, faster diagnostic technologies.

The long lines and waits for results could accelerate the spread of the virus by discouraging testing and making contact tracing more difficult. Health Canada in a statement said it is reviewing new kinds of tests"as quickly as possible without compromising patient safety" and working closely with manufacturers in Canada and abroad.

The World Health Organization has urged countries to test until less than 10 per cent of samples are positive. Only 1.4 per cent of COVID-19 tests in Canada were positive last week, but public health experts argue that wider testing limits future virus spread.Some doctors in Ontario have called for new testing guidelines that focus on those who have symptoms or had contact with an infected individual - an approach that could miss some contagious people.

Those tests are under review by Health Canada. Becton said it applied in Canada in July, after receiving emergency authorisation in the United States. Quidel did not immediately comment. A similar Abbott test called the Panbio and one from Canada's Sona Nanotech are also under review in Canada.

 

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