Posted on by Sally Fienup

Webinar With Poplar Health on Pool Testing

You are invited to a webinar tomorrow to learn about the Test to Protect program by Poplar Healthcare.

Zoom Info – 9am, Wednesday, November 18
Join Zoom Meeting
Email us for zoom meeting info – email here.

Test To Protect
Thank you for your interest in the Test to Protect program, which is also referred to as assurance testing for local Mid-South organizations. We have been pleased by the overwhelming interest in this program, and are encouraged by the prospect of so many organizations looking to ensure the community can operate more safely during this pandemic.

In this message, I will provide an overview of the program, which includes two types of asymptomatic testing options offered by Poplar Healthcare. Next week, I will begin scheduling webinars to showcase the web-based software you would use to manage and facilitate testing. Once I get those webinars scheduled, I will send you an invitation to each of them and you can accept whichever one works best with your schedule.

Option 1: Individual Specimen Pooling

Individual Specimen Pooling works by collecting a swab, from an asymptomatic individual, and placing it into a tube labeled for that specific person. Once at the lab, we pool/combine those specimens into groups of 5, 10 or 20 and process them as one pooled/combined specimen. If the pool is negative, each person receives a negative result. If the pool sample is positive, we go back and run each specimen individually to find the positive case(s). Then each result is reported. With this option, each person receives a result—either positive or negative—without needing an additional test. The cost for this option is up to $20 per test.

Option 2: Swab Pooling

Swab pooling, also referred to as “pod” testing, is the newest pooling option we have to offer. With this method, each person has their own nasal swab; however, up to 20 individual swabs are combined into one tube at the point of collection. If the combined pod/tube is negative, each person is negative. If the pod/tube is positive, the individuals are notified that their pod/tube was positive and each must get individually tested. They can go to any site/clinic offering individual testing, which includes Poplar Healthcare through our on-site drive thru testing, which is available Monday—Saturday between 8am—12pm. The follow-up test is covered by insurance. The cost for Swab Pooling is $100 per tube—regardless of how many individual swabs are placed into the tube. If you maximize the tube with 20 individual swabs, the cost comes out to $5/test.

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