You have just been tested for the coronavirus. What happens between your PCR test and the result that is communicated to you? Example in the clinical biology laboratory of the Marie Curie civil hospital in Charleroi. He receives the tests carried out on site but also from doctors in the region. Currently, between 150 and 200 samples are processed per day. This includes internal requests, patients returning from abroad, requests from doctors and others.
The process first includes a pre-analytical phase: the conformity of the sample is checked, encoding and administrative processing are carried out. The sample then passes through a machine supervised by an operator. The test carries out another administrative stay for the transmission of the result. “SDepending on the technique used, the test can be performed in almost 2 hours for the fastest techniques up to 7 or 8 hours for the most classic techniques and larger volumes for a final result rendering of 24 to 36 hours ” , specifies Alexandre Athanasopoulos, head of the clinical biology laboratory at the Marie Curie civil hospital in Charleroi.
Prioritization of the emergency
Why such a difference in time? A hierarchy of the emergency is established: a test which will make it possible to refer a patient who requires hospitalization will be carried out more quickly. Conversely, an asymptomatic or little symptomatic person will have their test carried out via the slower technique, intended for large volumes.
The resurgence of the coronavirus is putting this laboratory under pressure: the tests it receives are more numerous, and a queue is created. Also, at the start of the crisis, the lab was used almost exclusively for the coronavirus because all ancillary activities had been suspended (except emergencies). Today, everything has resumed, and the Covid-19 is coming back. Staff will be hired and new machines will be acquired.
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