Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Le Khanh Hang from the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) said the number of samples has increased an unprecedented volume in the past few days. Dr. Hang was chosen by the Ministry of Health in Da Nang to be Deputy Head of their testing team.
The Covid-19 test team in Da Nang consists of three main groups. Group 1 is responsible for tracing antibodies related to Covid-19 by serological methods. They are made up of experts from the serological department at NIHE who have set up a testing lab at CDC Da Nang.
The group has collected about 7,000 samples among which 5,000 are being tested, and expect to collect 10,000 - 20,000 more samples.
Group 2 is from the HCMC Pasteur Institute, the lab testing team from Bach Mai Hospital, and the Laboratory of Molecular Biology Diagnostic and Technical Transfer in Da Nang Lung Hospital.
Group 3 is stationed at CDC Da Nang in collaboration with Nha Trang’s Pasteur Institute, conducting molecular tests to identify Covid patients and subsequently isolating and treating them.
Thanks to advanced equipment recently provided, the group is able to test 8,000 - 10,000 samples a day compared to the previous 500 - 700, Hang added.
There were 4 institutions in Da Nang City capable of testing for Covid-19 before the second wave hit the city earlier this July. Now with the human resources coming from all over the country, Da Nang is now capable of testing about 15,000 - 17,000 samples.
Due to the large amount of samples collected, testing facilities have been set up as two specialized areas to ensure good quality control of the samples, said Assoc. Prof. Dr. Hang.
Hundreds of doctors and medical staff in Da Nang were quarantined for testing after the pandemic broke out, prompting medical students and volunteers to step up to the front line.
A nurse named Dang Thi Thu Ha received many words of respect from the online community after she unfortunately was hospitalized due to fatigue while treating patients at a local clinic in Da Nang. The head of the clinic stated that Ha had been performing medical declaration and transferring F1 patients into quarantine.
Meanwhile, Vo Thi Ngan, a pediatrician from Gia Dinh Hospital in HCMC had to leave her two young children in the care of a sitter to treat patients transferred from blocked off hospitals.
At the peak of the pandemic, having to deal with waves of people reporting in at medical stations and unidentified F0 patients, medical staff is seeing twice or thrice the usual amount of work, said 24-year-old Tram, 5th year student of Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy.
With the main medical force of Da Nang working in isolated areas, the support of medical students with basic-level expertise will greatly contribute to the fight against Covid-19.
Not only that, in response to the call from Da Nang’s Chairman of the People’s Committee, 33 doctors, nurses, and technicians from Hai Phong City and 25 from Binh Dinh Province volunteered to support Da Nang.
