The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has updated its Covid-19 testing protocol and approved antibody and antigen tests to be performed in the private healthcare sector.
According to information available on the MoPH website, the latest Covid-19 testing protocol means that approved private healthcare centres are now authorised to perform two new tests - rapid antigen testing and antibody testing – in addition to the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing that the private sector has been performing through the Covid-19 pandemic.
Rapid antigen testing offers a fast and reasonably accurate screening test to detect Covid-19 virus antigens in the individual. The test can be used for a range of uses including triaging patients with respiratory symptoms presenting to clinics, prior to preforming minor procedures and prior to hospital admission for minor procedures.
Rapid antigen testing requires a nasal swab to be taken from the individual and the results are usually available within 15 minutes. It can be performed by only trained nurses, physicians or other healthcare providers in approved healthcare facilities that can assure the quality of test performance, the MoPH announcement said.
This type of testing is useful for the routine screening of people who are not vaccinated as may be required in non-healthcare settings like the workplace, businesses or schools, particularly employees with direct customer exposure such as those in gyms, cashiers and restaurant workers.
Antibody testing has also been approved to be offered in the private healthcare facilities and are designed to demonstrate immunity against Covid-19 as a result of a previous infection or vaccination. These tests can be done in private healthcare facilities by trained nurses, physicians or other healthcare providers.
There are two types of the antibody test; the rapid test where a drop of blood (capillary blood collected from a finger prick sample) is placed on a small testing kit and where the result is obtained typically in 15 minutes, and a more elaborate test that requires a blood sample to be collected and sent to Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC)s' main laboratory for serology.
The introduction of these two new testing procedures to private healthcare facilities further strengthens the healthcare sector’s Covid-19 test strategy and increases access to Covid-19 tests for people in Qatar, the MoPH statement added.
The MoPH, with support from HMC-DLMP (Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology) will provide training for private healthcare facilities to perform both the rapid antigen testing and antibody testing.
Private health centres have to purchase kits to be used for the above tests directly from the distributors. The MoPH, through HMC-DLMP, will provide the list of approved kits validated at HMC.
PCR testing is done for the screening of asymptomatic people or patients presenting with Covid-19 like symptoms or other respiratory symptoms. It can detect the Covid-19 virus in the early acute infectious stage of infection and during the prolonged shedding stage that is often found in recovering patients.
Currently, PCR tests are required prior to travel, before major hospital procedures and for confirmation of infection following a positive rapid antigen test. PCR testing is considered the golden standard test in diagnosing acute infection with Covid-19.
Full details of the new Covid-19 testing protocol are now available on the MoPH website.
https://covid19.moph.gov.qa/EN/Documents/PDFs/Diagnostic_Testing_Protocols_Eng_merged.pdf