The challenges of COVID-19 testing in Ghana (video).

A video interview with a researcher based in Africa discusses the difficulties faced during the pandemic and the possible solutions to overcome them.

ICONS, a partner in the European research project CORONADX, has produced a video interview with Samuel Agordzo, a biomedical research assistant at the Department of Molecular Medicine, KNUST-Kumasi in Ghana.

We asked him to shed light on the challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic.

He reports about pressure on personnel and equipment, backlogs of samples, high costs, and unavailability of reagents for testing.

Portable devices, like the ones that CORONADX is developing, may help in reducing the community spread, since they are available at the point of need. Moreover, as the technology used in CORONADX could be adapted to other pathogens, it could be used in the future for the rapid detection of viruses beyond the current pandemic.

“As we speak, there is an Ebola outbreak in Africa. Once in a while, we have a surge in cases. So, what we can do is ensure that we have a portable device that will serve as a point-of-need testing device.” said Dr. Agordzo.

Watch the video interview here and stay tuned for more information.

Provided by iCube Programme

Source: sciencex