Rapid antigen testing rollout to start at Uniting Bankstown Aged Care Facility

Rapid antigen testing able to detect Covid-19 in less than 15 minutes will be rolled out in an aged-care facility in a Western Sydney hotspot on Sunday.

Rapid antigen testing able to detect Covid-19 in less than 15 minutes will be rolled out in an aged-care facility in a Western Sydney hotspot on Sunday, in a bid to keep Sydney’s most vulnerable safe in the ­latest outbreak.

In what is set to become a significant adjunct to vaccines in the fight against the Delta variant, the federal government has given the green light for rapid antigen testing (RAT) to start being rolled out across aged-care facilities.

Should the program prove successful, it is widely expected RAT will become the new norm in many workplaces, ­including NSW schools.

Italy has rolled out millions of rapid ‘antigen’ tests. Picture: AFP

Uniting Bankstown Aged Care Facility will be the first facility to use the tests, before the program is rolled out to 50 other facilities over the next four weeks, with those in the midst of the Greater Sydney hotspot zones first in line.

Health crisis management firm Respond Global has been selected to lead the national program, which follows a ­recent trial conducted in ­Glenfield, in southwest Sydney.

The firm will provide the residential aged-care facilities with training and protocols in using the tests while recording the RAT results.

Healthcare multinational Roche won the tender to supply the initial RATs, although three more suppliers will also join in to offer their products as the program expands.

Health and Aged Care ­Minister Greg Hunt said the test would allow for fast Covid-19 screening of aged-care residents and visitors.

“Given the rate at which we know the Delta variant can be spread between people, the very fast turnaround of RATs — around 15 minutes — makes these tests useful in preventing asymptomatic transmission and outbreaks as they can be used on a daily basis,” he said.

“Sadly, the pandemic’s toll in Australia last year was highest among aged-care residents. That is why, along with the ­increased infection control training and vaccinations, we are looking at further ­innovations such as the RATs to provide an additional layer of protection for the most ­vulnerable Australians.”

Mr Hunt said he expected the regular use of RATs in screening aged-care employees and visitors would provide greater reassurance for employees, their managers, residents and families.

Under the program, workers or visitors who test positive to a RAT — or who have Covid-19 symptoms — would be stopped from ­entering a residential aged-care facility and directed to undergo a PCR diagnostic test as soon as possible to confirm their Covid status.

The program follows a recent trial undertaken at the Whiddon Residential Aged Care Facility in Glenfield.

Among the key findings of the trial were that it gave workers more confidence that they were safe to come to work and were not putting themselves, their fellow workers and the residents at risk.