As COVID-19 pandemic continues to peak, CORE Diagnostics has collaborated with WeWork India to conduct antibody tests for its employees and members. This testing is in line with ICMR recommendations and would be utilised to estimate the antibody levels for sero-surveillance purposes.
Dr Shivani Sharma, Vice President – Pathology Services CORE Diagnostics, said they are pleased to partner with WeWork India, the world’s leading coworking and space-as-a-service platform, in taking care of their employees’ health and well being during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As organisations resume operations with easing lockdown restrictions, it is imperative to have a testing mechanism in place that will identify any possible infection and also eliminate any anxiety and concerns amongst the employees,” she said. In the absence of such testing, Dr Sharma explained that even a single infected case could have a cascading effect to bring the entire operation to a standstill. “We hope more and more companies would understand the pressing need of a testing mechanism for their employees,” she said.
As part of the collaboration, CORE Diagnostics would provide three types of tests – RT-PCR, SARS-CoV-2 IgG and SARS-CoV-2 Total Antibody test (IgG & IgM). The RT-PCR test will be performed on swab samples taken from the throat or nose. The IgG Antibody test detects the presence of IgG antibodies and if present, indicates that the patient, whether symptomatic or asymptomatic, had an immune response to the virus, confirming exposure. The Total Antibody Test (IgG & IgM) acts as an aid in identifying patients with an adaptive immune response to coronavirus, which indicates recent or prior infection. Overall, these two antibody tests will be performed using Chemiluminescent Immunoassay (CLIA) technology on the serum or plasma samples that can be collected through a simple blood draw. The results would be shared with WeWork within 24 hours.
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Raghuvinder Singh Pathania, Head of Operations WeWork India, said they have partnered with CORE Diagnostics to enable easy and safe COVID-19 testing for all employees and members. “As individuals gradually start to return to the office, it becomes imperative that we eliminate any form of risk to ensure the safety of everyone involved. This testing mechanism will also dispel concerns that many would have during this transition and would, in turn, lead to a positive and stress-free work environment.”
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