COVID-19 Solutions for Employers – Testing Options
Screening and monitoring are vital front-line defenses, but will only solve part of the problem. The CDC is encouraging testing for anyone showing symptoms, as well as anyone with known exposure to the virus, as a critical measure in stopping its spread.
Recent studies are showing that up to 40% of all people active infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 will not show any symptoms, but could still transmit it to others for 14 days or more.
RxGenomix offers diagnostic and surveillance testing
Pooled COVID-19 Testing
Pooled testing is an efficient and cost-effective way to detect the presence of the virus that causes COVID-19 in a larger population, even without anyone showing symptoms. This allows employers, administrators and public health officials to identify a potential source of infection and stop the spread of the virus immediately. Dozens of saliva samples are combined (pooled) and processed as a batch. If the batch tests positive, individual participants from that batch are tested using diagnostic (individual) testing to isolate the sources(s).
Diagnostic COVID-19 Testing
The three primary methods of testing to determine who is actively carrying the virus that causes COVID-19 include: nasopharyngeal swab, nasal swab or saliva collection. These are all effective, regardless of whether the person tested is showing symptoms of the disease or is asymtpomatic. RxGenomix uses the less invasive nasal swab method for diagnostic testing, collecting the sample from just inside the nostril.
If there is a reason to think someone may have contracted the virus, or if you want to start a proactive program, you and the employee can get results faster without increasing the employee’s risk of contracting or spreading the virus – no waiting in line at a crowded health center. We can set up easy testing at your site.
Quicker turnaround will also allow anyone testing negative to get back to work, rather than waiting around for results at home. And as labs get busier, this is getting to be more of a problem.
To help you understand three different sample collection methods:
Nasopharyngeal Swab
Inserted deep into the nasal cavity. Must be administered. Used for COVID-19 diagnostic.
Nasal Swab
Inserted only into nostril. Can be self-administered. Used for COVID-19 diagnostic.
Saliva Collection
Can be self-administered. Used for pooled testing (surveillance) and COVID-19 diagnostic.