The bad news concerns citizens who were screened between January 2 and 7 in a clinic or CLSC from CIUSSS of the North-of-the-Island-of-Montreal.
On Wednesday, the establishment sent them the following message:
” Unfortunately, your sample could not be analyzed within the prescribed 72-hour time frame and is no longer considered valid. Therefore, your sample has been destroyed and we will not be able to issue a result for it. »
The CIUSSS explains that successive breakage of several analyzers in the laboratory
are in question, but also that the abnormally high volume of samples for screening
caused a unusual delay in analysis
.
Spokesperson Émilie Jacob reports that the laboratory at the Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur-de-Montréal can analyze approximately 3,000 tests per day. However, between January 3 and 7, more than 5,000 daily tests were received.
Until January 5, all people with symptoms were asked to take PCR tests. Subsequently, these tests were reserved for certain priority categories, such as essential workers.
The CIUSSS ensures that the health workers who had identified themselves as such did not lose their results, because their specimens were given priority treatment
.
” We are aware that this may have caused inconvenience and we are very sorry. »
Fortunately, the situation has since recovered.
, assures the spokesperson and, the criteria for in-clinic screening tests have since been revised, so this is not likely to happen again
.
