THE Department of Health (DOH) assured the public on Monday it is exerting all efforts to provide timely testing after the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) was overwhelmed with Covid-19 tests when the disease started to spread nationwide.
RITM Director Celia Carlos, in a virtual press conference, told DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire the tedious testing procedure of Covid-19 results takes 48 to 72 hours. The turnout time, however, according to Carlos, is already a “big improvement.”
“We hope that we can sustain this,” she added, noting that while before the RITM could only test 300 kits per day, “the RITM is now capable of conducting 900 to 1,000 tests each day.”
While they continue to do their best to quickly validate the test kits—but with accurate results—Carlos assured that they will go on taking care of patients in RITM as well.
Meanwhile, Vergeire said testing results will soon be expedited with the DOH’s expanded capacity following the operation of subnational laboratories at Vicente Sotto Memorial Center in Cebu City, Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City, Baguio General Hospital in Baguio City, University of the Philippines-National Institutes of Health (UP-NIH) and Lung Center of the Philippines in Quezon City. These laboratories can do at least 200 tests per day.
Vergeire said the molecular biology laboratories of St. Luke’s hospitals in Bonifacio Global City and Quezon City will also start doing Covid-19 testing next week.
“More laboratories will be assessed,” Vergeire said, and at least 40 private and public hospitals including freestanding laboratories with molecular biology services have signified their interest to do Covid-19 testing.
The DOH will go to these laboratories to assess their capability for testing Covid-19 specimens, she added.
Marikina lab
After the DOH disapproved the Marikina Covid-19 Testing Center located at the City Health Office, Mayor Marcelino Teodoro on Monday announced that a two-story building will be the new Marikina City Covid-19 Testing Center.
Teodoro said the free-standing structure is located in a part of the city that is not densely populated but accessible. He said it suits the DOH requirements and standard.
The newly built 160-square-meter testing center is located at Bayan-Bayanan Avenue, Barangay Concepcion Uno, Marikina City.
On March 24, DOH told City Hall the proposed testing facility should be located in a separate location/facility outside the City Health Office so that cross-infection is minimized and less foot traffic will be observed for the protection of staff and Marikina residents.