Content
Skip to Main ContentAccessibility Help
Saskatchewan

SHA to offer rapid COVID-19 testing training to businesses, workplaces

Doctors shared details on the province's COVID-19 rapid testing strategy at a Saskatchewan Health Authority physician's town hall on Thursday.

Rapid tests can help prevent outbreaks, should be used for screening purposes only

Laura Sciarpelletti · CBC News ·
On Monday, daycares, physician offices, congregate workplaces and correctional facilities can apply to get antigen testing training. On May 10, it also opens up to businesses, municipalities and other government departments.  (Hugh Hastings/Getty Images)

Doctors shared details on the province's COVID-19 rapid testing strategy at a Saskatchewan Health Authority physician's town hall on Thursday.

The five-phase rapid antigen testing program began April 11, and is already being used by places like group homes, detox centres, pharmacies and schools throughout the province.

On Monday, daycares, physician offices, congregate workplaces and correctional facilities can apply to get antigen testing training. On May 10, it also opens up to businesses, municipalities and other government departments. 

The SHA is currently offering training for PanBio and BD Veritor nasal swabs, which typically provide results in 15 minutes.

COVID-19 rapid tests can be less accurate than the lab-analyzed counterpart, so they are not intended for diagnosis, according to the province. They're for screening purposes only, and should only be used on people who do not have symptoms.

The SHA says these tests can help businesses with outbreak prevention, and help people know who needs further investigation and should stay home.

Eligible workplaces or organizations need to complete an intake application, complete online training provided by the health authority, train their testers, get the rapid testing supplies, test and report the results.

(Saskatchewan Health Authority)

ICU capacity

Doctors also unpacked Regina's ICU statistics at the Thursday physician's town hall.

The province had 43 additional ICU beds in operation as of April 28. These numbers reflect the spread of variants of concern in Saskatchewan. Physicians say the B117 variant first detected in the U.K. is 50 per cent more infectious than the original COVID-19 virus. It's also 60 per cent more severe and is impacting a younger demographic.

For Regina patients, the average ICU length of stay has steadily increased to the current total of 14 days, nearly double what it was in January.

Between April 1 and April 26, 68 patients were admitted to Regina's ICUs. That is up from 57 patients in March, and only 31 in February.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Laura Sciarpelletti

Journalist & Radio Columnist

Laura is a journalist for CBC Saskatchewan. She is also the community reporter for CBC's virtual road trip series Land of Living Stories and host of the arts and culture radio column Queen City Scene Setter, which airs on CBC's The Morning Edition. Laura previously worked for CBC Vancouver. Some of her former work has appeared in the Globe and Mail, NYLON Magazine, VICE Canada and The Tyee. Laura specializes in human interest, arts and health care coverage. She holds a master of journalism degree from the University of British Columbia. Send Laura news tips at laura.sciarpelletti@cbc.ca

    CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices|About CBC News
    Corrections and clarifications|Submit a news tip|