For Immediate Release
Maryanne Boster
Director of Corporate Communications
Virginia Hospital Center
tel: 703.558.6581
Arlington, VA: April 10, 2020 – Virginia Hospital Center (VHC), a community-based hospital providing medical services to the Washington, DC metropolitan area for 75 years, is among the first hospitals in the nation to receive the fastest available molecular point-of-care test for the detection of novel coronavirus (COVID-19), delivering positive results in as little as five minutes and negative results in 13 minutes.
“Access to testing remains a crucial step in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Jeffrey DiLisi, Chief Medical Officer of Virginia Hospital Center. “Our ability to use this rapid result test is a great step forward in protecting the safety of our patients, staff and community.”
The new Abbott ID NOW COVID-19 test runs on Abbott’s ID NOWTM platform—a lightweight box (6.6 pounds and the size of a small toaster) that can sit in a variety of locations. Because of its small size, it can be used in more non-traditional places where people can have their results in a matter of minutes, bringing an alternate testing technology to combat the novel coronavirus.
“Through the incredible work of teams across Abbott, we expect to deliver 50,000 COVID-19 tests per day to healthcare professionals on the front lines, where testing capabilities are needed most,” Chris Scoggins, Senior Vice President of Rapid Diagnostics at Abbott said in a statement. “Portable molecular testing expands the country’s capacity to get people answers faster.”
Virginia Hospital Center is now using the ID NOW COVID-19 test to confirm COVID-19 diagnoses for inpatients and VHC staff.