Respiratory Virus Testing

Spring is coming to an end, the weather is warming up, and respiratory viruses are moving into their summer phase. What this means is influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) numbers are down to almost nothing and SARS-CoV-2 numbers remain stable and low.

This means that from Monday 27th November we will move to our summer testing protocols. All requests for SARS-CoV-2/Influenza A+B/RSV will be batched and run once a day. Urgent testing will be limited to patients being admitted to ICU with respiratory symptoms or on approval of a Clinical Microbiologist / ID Physician.

Please note that laboratory testing for respiratory viruses should only be considered in patients who have been admitted, or are about to be admitted to hospital, and in inpatients with new onset of respiratory symptoms.