Coronavirus testing logistics in North Alabama

Starting at 4:30 am.

Turning our attention now to the coronavirus pandemic... as the number of covid cases continues to climb in alabama -- the percentage of tests that are positive is also increasing.

You're taking a look at the latest data from the alabama department of public health.

Waay 31's will robinson-smith has been periodically checking in with local diagnostic lab - dia-therix eurofins - throughout this pandemic.

He joins us live from hudson alpha after learning where the lab says we are with testing at this point in the pandemic.

By now -- many of us have become familiar with the p-c-r test -- where a nurse puts one of these swabs an uncomfortable distance inside your nasal cavity -- bottles it up and then sends it off to be tested in a tube similar to this one.

The president of diatherix eurofins says even though they're small -- the supply of plastics like this are something they're watching very closely.

It has been a pounding intensity since really before march.

Diatherix eurofins president jennifer cart makes no bones about what the pandemic has been like for folks in labs like hers.

Jennifer cart, president, diatherix eurofins we launched our test march 17, but before then, our r&d team and clinical lab were all validating and we were preparing.

We were getting ready essentially to go to battle and that battle has not stopped.

Since then -- waay 31 has checked in with them a couple of times over the spring and summer to see how they've been able to ramp up their testing capacity as the virus spread across the country.

She says being part of a global company has helped them keep ahead of the curve when it comes to their supplies.

We all keep an inventory spreadsheet and so, when we see that we're short something, we check around and see if we can get something from one of our sister labs.

Will robinson-smith early on in the pandemic, the part of the supply chain that testing labs were really watching were reagents.

Nowadays, it's plastics like these and labs like diatherix eurofins are keeping a close eye on their supply chain.

This lab in particular though says it has a good supply on hand for the next wave to come over the course of the fall and winter.

Cart says tips are part of a selection of plastics that they consistantly check to make sure they have as much as they think they will need.

Tips of plastics go on many different instruments: pipettes, the robots, etc.

Different sized tips, but ultimately, there are only so many of the manufacturers manufacturing those.

Adding those robotics she mentioned is another way the lab has worked to improve its testing capacity over the past few months.

The robots are intended to do some of the people's jobs.

So, essentially transferring a specimen or moving reagents into wells, the robots assist with that.

So, it's a little bit more consistent and reduces the amount of human motion and movement that needs to take place.

With winter and flu season coming -- cart says there will likely be a higher demand for testing because more people will want to know if their symptoms mean influenza or covid-19.

It will be a shift away from what was a single-target covid to say whether you have covid or you don't have covid, whether you're symptomatic or not.

Now it's going to be: i'm sick, i don't know what it is, i want to know which virus.

Cart says globally, the eurofins company has done more than a million p-c-r tests for covid-19.

She added that while they are typically intended for those who are showing symptoms -- they are still considered to be the most reliable test available -- symptomatic or not.

Reporting live in huntsville -- will robinson-smith -- waay 31 news.