State urged to conduct mass Covid tests to asses positivity rate

The government has been called upon to conduct mass Covid-19 testing to give a clear picture of the disease's positivity rate in the country.

The Association of Kenya Medical Laboratory Scientific Officers (AKMLSO) noted that the positivity rate was based on results obtained from target groups.

Led by AKMLSO National Executive Chairman Safari Kithi, they said this does not conclusively give a true picture of the situation in the country.

With Covid-19 still posing a challenge to health systems across the world, Kithi said the government must move with speed and roll out mass testing for proper mechanisms to be put in place to contain the disease.

He noted that to determine the prevalence rate of a disease, a lot of research is involved including a collection of enough statistics from the study population.

“We think that if the government wants to communicate to the citizens about the status of Covid-19, they need to schedule a weekly, or by weekly to obtain enough population so that the status will be a projection that is scientifically derived."

Kithi noted that the government through well-wishers have obtained a lot of testing materials including rapid and molecule tests and are lying in the laboratories because there is information that covid 19 has gone done.

“We don’t know if at some point we will have an expiry of these reagents and we wouldn’t want that to be, we want the laboratories to be given this opportunity to do mass testing even if it will be some scheduled testing”.

He added that the government had not declared that the country is Covid-19 free.

“It is here with us therefore a lot of testing and surveillance is key to winning the war against the disease,” noted Kithi adding that the mass testing, should be carried out for at least three months and the data interrogated to come up with the right positivity rate.

 He was speaking in Kisumu on Wednesday during the 27th annual AKMLSO scientific conference themed Re-engineering the health systems to combat covid 19.

Moses Lorre, the National conference organizing committee Chairman, said the conference has been organized in conjunction with their East African Community Members.

While commending the government for their efforts, Lorre stated that Laboratory officers  play a critical role in disease case management noting that accurate data for Covid-19 and other ailments was critical to keep the population healthy.

41 exhibitors drawn from the East African Community (EAC) showcased various equipment and technology which governments have been urged to enlist.

He noted that there was a need for embracing new technologies to get accurate data for proper decision making.