Capacity of COVID-19 labs expected to increase - Adham Baba

KUALA LUMPUR: The capacity of COVID-19 laboratories in the country is expected to increase further for more sample testing, especially from the red and yellow zone areas, as well as screening and contact tracing.

Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba said as of yesterday (Oct 14), 42 per cent of the capacity of COVID-19 laboratories in the country had been used.

“In Sabah, the Kota Kinabalu Public Health Laboratory (MKAKK), the laboratories at Queen Elizabeth Hospital and Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), with a capacity of 2,500 tests a day, are already operational. The remaining samples from all over Sabah are sent by the Royal Malaysia Air Force (RMAF) mercy flight to the peninsula.

“Besides that, the laboratory at Tawau Kubota Health Clinic is being equipped to conduct the Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) test and is expected to be able to operate soon,” he said in a statement today.

Dr Adham said the Health Ministry (MOH) continues to strengthen its preparedness in facing the pandemic, including increasing the maximum capacity of COVID-19 laboratories to 54,706 RT-PCR tests daily.

He said it was achieved through integrated cooperation of all 61 laboratories under the MOH, the Malaysian Armed Forces, Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (MOSTI), public and private Universities, as well as private laboratories.

Meanwhile, a total of 13 laboratories at public universities under the Ministry of Higher Education and private laboratories are also mobilising their resources to the maximum, he added.

On the use of the Antigen Rapid Test Kit (RTK-Ag), he said it was to facilitate early detection of more COVID-19 positive cases in the field.

-- BERNAMA