Preparations to launch a genetic laboratory are underway at the hospital in Bolesławiec. The laboratory will begin operating soon. Thanks to it, as many as 400 samples a day will be tested for the presence of coronavirus. The investment, worth PLN 1.4 million, was made possible by support provided במסגרת the Lower Silesian Health Protection Package. Marshal Cezary Przybylski attended the opening.
Director of the hospital in Bolesławiec, Kamil Barczyk:
The decision to open the laboratory was forced upon us. It was necessary. We made the decision together as the entire management team, without waiting for funding. We secured the funding in the last month from European Union funds administered by the voivodeship marshal, from local-government funds and from our own resources. The investment is worth PLN 1.5 million.
This is highly specialized, state-of-the-art equipment—the diagnostic laboratory equipment of the future. Laboratories of this kind are only just entering genetic diagnostics. We will use the laboratory not only to test for coronavirus, but also to test for other types of viruses and bacteria. In the case of coronavirus, we will be able to test up to 400 samples per day. We have a complete set of 5,000 tests. Results for coronavirus tests will be available within several hours. This will significantly increase bed turnover.
The hospital’s work involves more than hospitalized patients. It also includes serving patients in the so-called coronabus—that is, people in home isolation or home quarantine—using a swab-collection ambulance. A drive-through point has also been established. Patients who have been referred by a doctor and are in quarantine can arrive in their own cars after receiving an SMS and get tested. According to the valuation by the National Health Fund, such a test costs PLN 280.
The epidemiological situation in Poland is developing dynamically, which is why it remains extremely important to perform large numbers of tests identifying people infected with coronavirus.
“The number of tests performed is crucial in the fight against coronavirus. We are systematically increasing the number of laboratories conducting such tests in Lower Silesia. In total, we already have eight such laboratories in the region, and we plan to open more,” explains Marshal Cezary Przybylski of Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy.
For the new laboratory to conduct specialized coronavirus testing using the PCR method, it was necessary to purchase the required equipment and reagents, adapt the laboratory and train the staff. The molecular diagnostics laboratory consists of rooms containing specialized machines: laminar-flow cabinets, separators, analyzers and other auxiliary equipment intended entirely for conducting so-called PCR tests for coronavirus. As many as 400 tests can be performed here daily, while the hospital’s current demand is 200. The total cost of the investment was PLN 1.4 million and was co-financed by European funds. In total, as part of the Lower Silesian Health Protection Package financed with the support of EU funds, the district hospital in Bolesławiec received PLN 5.5 million in aid.
Coronavirus diagnostics for patients suspected of infection is highly important in limiting the spread of the epidemic. According to WHO recommendations, the tests primarily used to detect SARS-CoV-2 are genetic tests using the RT-PCR method, supplemented by immunological tests. The laboratory can also identify other viruses.
The Laboratory of the Healthcare Complex in Bolesławiec has been added to the government’s list of COVID laboratories https://www.gov.pl/web/zdrowie/lista-laboratoriow-covid. In addition, testing will be available through the DRIVE THRU system—the sample will be collected from people staying in their cars.