As novel coronavirus cases rise globally, along with deaths, developing a rapid test for COVID-19 is one of the key areas that researchers in Canada and around the world are targeting.
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Experts have said widespread testing is necessary because it allows for better management of an outbreak. The British government, for instance, bought 3.5 million antibody testing kits from various suppliers in late March, with the intention of making sure they work before distributing them.
“The sooner you know if someone’s positive or negative, then the more infection control and outbreak control you can put in place,” said Dr. Anna Banerji, an associate professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto.
“Because in that time period, when someone may not be sure, they could be potentially spreading the virus. I think people practise more infection control when they know that someone has a condition.”
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1:49 Coronavirus: Alberta Health Services explains why there is less testing in South Zone
Coronavirus: Alberta Health Services explains why there is less testing in South Zone
World Health Organization director-general Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has also urged this: “You can’t win a football game by defending, you have to attack as well.”
Countries must “test, test, test, test” in order to know who is infected and who needs to be isolated, he said earlier this month.
As of March 28, more than 184,000 people in Canada had been tested at provincial and national labs across the country. The total number of confirmed cases across the country have exceeded 5,500, with 61 deaths and 472 recoveries. But getting tested can be slow, with more than 8,600 people in Ontario still awaiting test results as of March 28.
Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam has previously said testing centres have to “be smart” about who they test, due to supply issues.
Testing in Canada has been slow in getting set up, but Banerji said she expects it to increase.
“I expect in the next few weeks that the testing will be a lot more streamlined,” she said in a recent interview with Global News.
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1:55 Coronavirus outbreak: New antibody test could be key in COVID-19 fight
Coronavirus outbreak: New antibody test could be key in COVID-19 fight
Current testing for COVID-19 in Canada varies by jurisdiction, according to infectious disease expert Dr. Alon Vaisman.
In Toronto, University Health Network’s lab has a “fairly good” turnaround time of less than 24 hours, sometimes shorter, he said. But more remote areas might have a longer turnaround time. So it depends, he said.
2:25 Coronavirus outbreak: Trump says FDA has approved Chloroquine for COVID-19 testing
Coronavirus outbreak: Trump says FDA has approved Chloroquine for COVID-19 testing
“But in the places where they’re doing it rapidly and efficiently, it could be even as short as less than 12 hours, actually,” Vaisman said.
A rapid point-of-care test for COVID-19 would be “great,” he said. But until it’s published in a peer-reviewed journal, “it’s hard to know what exactly is the reality.”
Point-of-care testing is essentially “medical diagnostic testing performed outside the clinical laboratory, at or near, where a patient is receiving care,” according to the College of Medical Laboratory Technologists of Ontario.
1:40 Nova Scotia biologists working around the clock to test COVID-19
Nova Scotia biologists working around the clock to test COVID-19
It may or may not be carried out by lab personnel, with the results used for “clinical decision making.”
Point-of-care testing exists for HIV, for instance, where a nurse can draw a sample, place it in a testing tray and run the test right then and there, Vaisman said.
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“It would help hospitals make decisions regarding isolation and movement of patients and treatment,” he said. “So it’d be a pretty significant development.”
2:07 Coronavirus outbreak: Canada approves 2 new COVID-19 tests
Coronavirus outbreak: Canada approves 2 new COVID-19 tests
Developments in Canada
Canada has allocated millions in research dollars towards the new coronavirus, including a rapid point-of-care diagnostic test for the “quick isolation of those infected.”
Federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu signed an interim order around mid-March to expedite access to two new diagnostic tests to allow provincial labs to speed up testing.
The government’s plan to mobilize industry has also tapped into an Ottawa firm called Spartan that makes diagnostic equipment. The company has signed a letter of intent with the federal government.
Spartan is developing a portable device that could provide rapid COVID-19 test results, according to a statement by the Prime Minister’s Office.
The firm is in “discussions” with Health Canada as well as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for approval for the device, which could provide results within 30 minutes. A commercial test could be eight to 12 weeks away, according to Spartan.
2:00 Coronavirus outbreak: Ontario hoping to increase to 5,000 tests per day says Williams
Coronavirus outbreak: Ontario hoping to increase to 5,000 tests per day says Williams
“There’s a portable DNA analyzer, so you take that swab sample, you put it in the cartridge, the cartridge goes into the device and then it gives you results,” Spartan CEO Paul Lem told Global News Radio.
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It’s a diagnostic test that can detect infection in a person, and could be used in health-care facilities, community centres, airports or border crossings, he said.
From Ireland to Japan, there have been new developments in recent weeks when it come to rapid tests for COVID-19.
For instance, an Irish company called Assay Genie says it has a rapid test for COVID-19.
“Using a rapid COVID-19 test can identify more people who do not know they have been infected,” the website says, describing the test as for research use only.
A disclaimer adds: “While we believe this kit is to be an effective indicator of infection, we cannot guarantee 100% accuracy.”
1:21 Coronavirus: Manitoba’s first drive-thru testing site opens in Selkirk
Coronavirus: Manitoba’s first drive-thru testing site opens in Selkirk
Company co-founder Seán Mac Fhearraigh told Global News the rapid point-of-care test would use a drop of blood. The company began working on the test kits as soon as they heard about the new coronavirus, which first appeared in Wuhan in December 2019.
“We can see that every health-care system is under a terrible burden at the moment,” he said. A rapid test for COVID-19 could mean quicker decision-making for nurses and doctors.
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He says the test kit detects an immune response, and that the company is starting to test with a hospital in Ireland this week.
“Say we have an incredibly sick person,” Mac Fhearraigh said. “You have a fast result, 15 minutes, we can say: ‘Go isolate first for the six or seven hours that it might take to get a test result by the traditional method.’”
In the U.S., two rapid tests were recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The second, Abbott Laboratories, says its tests can give results within 15 minutes.
In Japan, researchers have developed a test kit that, from start to finish, takes 40 minutes, according to the Nikkei Asian Review. Canon Medical started developing the kit in late February.
2:10 Italy’s coronavirus death toll jumps by nearly 800 in single day
Italy’s coronavirus death toll jumps by nearly 800 in single day
Researchers at Oxford University have touted a rapid COVID-19 test. The university’s engineering science department has teamed up with the Oxford Suzhou Centre for Advanced Research (OSCAR).
The university says the new test is “much faster” — with results in just half an hour — and negates the need for a complex instrument. Researchers there are arranging clinical validation trials soon.
— With files by Reuters, Global News reporter Leslie Young
EDMONTON – The legendary k.d. lang got the band back together at the Canadian Country Music Association awards show.
Lang teamed up with the Reclines for the first time in 35 years to belt out “Big Boned Gal” from their last album together in 1989.
Clad in a blue and green western-style dress, lang strut across the stage in Edmonton to embody the “big boned gal from southern Alberta.”
The awards show saw Alberta’s MacKenzie Porter and Ontario’s Josh Ross take home hardware for being best female and male artists of the year.
Ross also won entertainer of the year and single of the year for “Trouble.”
Ontario artist Jade Eagleson won album of the year for “Do It Anyway.”
The James Barker Band from Woodville, Ont., won fans’ choice and group of the year.
During their acceptance speech, frontman Barker hinted at new music and a possible tour in 2025.
Ross says he and his band play roughly 150 shows every year and are never home, but says taking home entertainer of the year made the hard work worth it.
Porter won for female artist of the year and top video for “Chasing Tornadoes.”
The female artist win ends the five-year streak of Tenille Townes being awarded the coveted hardware.
Porter had been nominated seven times previously for the award in the past decade but hadn’t won until now.
The artist from Medicine Hat, Alta., says it takes a lot of hard work and hustle to succeed as a female in the country music industry and gave a shout out to her fellow singers and her newborn daughter.
Joining the two artists in the winners’ circle was Ontario singer-songwriter Owen Riegling, who won for breakthrough artist of the year.
The show began with American artist and co-host Thomas Rhett being dubbed an honorary Canadian by Edmonton Oilers players Corey Perry and Leon Draisaitl.
Rhett donned an Oilers jersey that was gifted to him by the pair.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2024.
EDMONTON – Ontario country artist Jade Eagleson has won album of the year at the 2024 Canadian Country Music Association Awards in Edmonton.
The singer from Bailieboro, Ont., was up for six awards alongside Alberta’s MacKenzie Porter.
Eagleson took home album of the year for “Do It Anyway” and says he’s thankful to his wife and management team for helping him reach the level he’s at.
The James Barker Band from Woodville, Ont., also won fans’ choice and group of the year at the award show, held in Edmonton.
During their acceptance speech, frontman Barker hinted at new music and a possible tour in 2025.
Another Ontario crooner, Josh Ross, has taken home a trio of awards, receiving entertainer of the year, male artist of the year and single of the year.
He says he and his band play roughly 150 shows every year and are never home, but says taking home entertainer of the year makes the hard work worth it.
Porter took home female artist of the year, ending the five-year streak of Tenille Townes being awarded the coveted hardware.
Porter had been nominated seven times previously for the award in the past decade but hadn’t won until tonight.
The artist from Medicine Hat, Alta., says it takes a lot of hard work and hustle to succeed as a female in the country music industry and gave a shout out to her fellow singers and her newborn daughter.
Joining the two artists in the winners’ circle was Ontario singer-songwriter Owen Riegling, who won for breakthrough artist of the year.
The show began with American artist and co-host Thomas Rhett being dubbed an honorary Canadian by Edmonton Oilers players Corey Perry and Leon Draisaitl.
Rhett donned an Oilers jersey that was gifted to him by the pair.
The return of k.d. lang and the Reclines was expected to be a highlight of the show.
The appearance will mark the first time the Alberta songstress has teamed up with the band in 35 years and is tied to lang’s induction into the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame.
The awards show is back in Alberta’s capital for the first time since 2014. It was held in Hamilton last year and in Calgary in 2022.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2024.
VANDERHOOF, B.C. – British Columbia Conservatives are promising changes they say will bring more stability to the province’s struggling forest industry.
Leader John Rustad announced his plan for the sector a week before the official launch of the provincial election campaign, saying a Conservative government would do away with stumpage fees paid when timber is harvested and instead put a tax on the final products that are produced.
Rustad said Saturday that under a provincial Conservative government, a small fee may be charged upfront, but the bulk would come at the end of the process, depending on what type of product is created.
He also promised to review how wildfires are managed, as well as streamline the permit process and review what he calls the province’s “uncompetitive cost structure.”
“British Columbia is by far the highest cost producers of any jurisdiction in North America. We need to be able to drive down those costs, so that our forest sector can actually be able to do the reinvestment, to be able to create the jobs and make sure that they’re still there to be able to support our communities,” he said.
The governing New Democrats meanwhile, say eliminating stumpage fees would inflame the softwood lumber dispute with the United States and hurt forestry workers.
In a statement issued by the NDP, Andrew Mercier, the party’s candidate in Langley-Willowbrook, said Rustad failed to support the industry when he was in government under the former BC Liberals.
“Not only will Rustad’s old thinking and recycled ideas fail to deliver, his proposal to eliminate stumpage would inflame the softwood lumber dispute — punishing forestry workers and communities,” Mercier said, accusing Rustad of ignoring the complexity of the challenges facing the industry.
The softwood lumber dispute between the U.S. and Canada stretches back decades. In August, the U.S. Department of Commerce nearly doubled duties on softwood lumber.
International Trade Minister Mary Ng has said Canada has taken steps to launch two legal challenges under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement.
Rustad said a provincial Conservative government would push hard to get a deal with the United States over the ongoing dispute “whether it’s with the rest of Canada or by itself.”
He said his party’s proposed changes are in the name of bringing “stability” and “hope” to the industry that has seen multiple closures of mills in rural communities over the last several years.
Most recently, Canfor Corp. decided to shutter two northern British Columbia sawmills earlier this month, leaving hundreds of workers unemployed by the end of the year.
According to the United Steelworkers union, Canfor has closed 10 mills in the province since November 2011, including nine in northern B.C.
Jeff Bromley, chair of the United Steelworkers wood council, said Saturday the idea of changes in favour of taxing the final product has been floated in the past.
He said the finer details of the Conservative plan will be important, but that the system needs to be improved and “new ideas are certainly something I’d be willing to entertain.”
“Something needs to happen, or the industry is just going to bleed and wither away and be a shadow of its former self,” Bromley said.
“Politics aside, if (Rustad) can come up with a policy that enables my members to work, then I would be supportive of that. But then I’m supportive of any government that would come up with policies and fibre for our mills to run. Period.”
When Canfor announced its latest closures, Forests Minister Bruce Ralston said the sector was a “foundational part” of the province and the current NDP government would work to support both local jobs and wood manufacturing operations.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 14, 2024
