ILOILO City – Another laboratory has been added to Western Visayas’ capacity to test for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and scale up efforts against the contagious disease.
The new molecular laboratory is at the West Visayas State University Medical Center (WVSUMC) in Jaro district. It is this city’s fifth laboratory and the region’s 13th.
Yesterday, the P56-million WVSUMC molecular laboratory was inaugurated.
According to WVSUMC chief Dr. Dave Endel Gelito III, it passed the requisite proficiency test conducted by the Department of Health (DOH) and the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine.
“We are only waiting for the license to operate (LTO) from DOH,” said Gelito.
The laboratory is initially projected to have a capacity of 150 tests per day once it starts operating next week, according to Dr. Anna Victoria Sumbong, WVSUMC chief pathologist.
The turn-around-time of the test – the length of waiting for the test result to come out – is 24 to 48 hours, Sumbong said.
Those who would get priority in the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction test will be the hospital’s patients, frontliners, employees, and WVSU students. They may use their Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) insurance for the COVID-19 testing.
Non–PhilHealth members will still be accommodated but shall pay P3,800 for the testing.
The WVSUMC molecular laboratory was inaugurated in the presence of Commission on Higher on Education chairperson Dr. Prospero De Vera, Gelito, WVSU president Dr. Joselito Villaruz, and WVSU vice president Dr. Celina Gellada.
Also present in the event were Cong. Julienne Baronda and Atty. Dennis Ventilacion representing Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr.
The laboratory will not solely test COVID-19 but also other infectious diseases or agents in the future, said Villaruz.
“This new hospital feature is a clear manifestation of the university’s commitment to deliver quality healthcare to the Ilonggos and to the rest of Region 6,” the WVSU president added.
The city government used to bring specimens it collected to the Western Visayas Medical (WVMC) Center sub-national laboratory in Mandurriao district.
Due to the sheer volume of specimens that WVMC was handling, however, it was releasing test results for at least a week after submission.
As of today, Region 6 has the following COVID-19 testing centers:
* Western Visayas Medical Center in Iloilo City
* Teresita Jalandoni Provincial Hospital in Silay City, Negros Occidental
* Qualimed Hospital in Iloilo City
* Iloilo Metro Hospital and Medical Center in Iloilo City
* Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital in Bacolod City
* Bacolod Queen of Mercy Hospital in Bacolod City
* The Doctors Hospital, Inc. in Bacolod City
* Philippine Red Cross – Negros Occidental Molecular Laboratory in Bacolod City
* Dr. Rafael S. Tumbokon Memorial Hospital in Kalibo, Aklan
* Roxas City Diagnostic and Laboratory Center in Roxas City, Capiz
* Uswag Iloilo Molecular Laboratory in Iloilo City
* Roxas Memorial Provincial Hospital Molecular Laboratory./PN
