How rapid tests helped identify patients early

Noida: The Noida health department’s decision to scale up testing seems to have yielded results in identifying Covid patients early. Of the 6,476 cases reported till August 16 in the district, 40% have been detected over the past one month. During the same period, Noida has conducted 43% of its total tests — an average of more than 2,000 tests daily.
The Noida administration had earlier been accused of not doing enough tests. Testing picked up only in the last week of June and continued through July when the government set a target of 4,000 tests daily between July 2 and 12. As the increased testing helped Noida identify patients early and ensure timely treatment, the Covid response team requested the government for 1 lakh antigen kits.
Of the 1.5 lakh tests conducted in Noida so far, 66,207 samples had been examined between July 16 and August 16. And in the same period, 2,614 people have been found to have Covid. While government-run institutes have processed 58,327 samples in the past one month, private laboratories and hospitals have conducted 7,880 tests.
As with other parts of the country, most of the Covid cases during Noida’s testing drive have been reported from urban pockets. Among the four blocks in the district, Bisrakh has accounted for 55% of the cases. Asked why Bisrakh had reported the most number of Covid cases, district magistrate Suhas LY explained that the block covers a major portion of Noida city and has a higher population than the other areas. “Also, a major portion of the health infrastructure, including the district hospital, is situated in Bisrakh,” he added.
Not just cases, Bisrakh also had the most number of samples tested. Of the 58,327 tests conducted in the past one month, more than 35,000 were in Bisrakh alone. In Dankaur and Jewar, two blocks located on the outskirts of the city, 5,492 and 6,879 samples were examined, respectively.
In the next phase of Covid battle, officials said the focus would be on random tests across commercial establishments and markets. “Teams with rapid antigen kits will be dispatched,” an official said.