Covid-19 test delays pile misery on people

Undergoing a Covid-19 test is becoming a painful ordeal for people in Bengaluru.

The state government, which has ramped up its Covid-19 testing mechanism, claims RT-PCR test results are delivered within 48 hours. But the reality seems to be different, with some reporting a nerve-shredding wait lasting between three and eight days.

Officials admitted that delays were taking place. One factor, according to a source, is the backlog of cases which first made headlines in June.

“That backlog has persisted to this day, as there has not been a substantial scaling-up of the testing system,” the source said. “The number of samples being collected has gone up but the human resource like microbiologists and lab technicians who are crucial for testing has remained the same.”

A second government source confirmed this, adding that there are still about 20,000 samples in the backlog. Even as they clear the old ones, new cases join the pending list.

According to Dr C N Manjunath, nodal officer for testing in the state, the problem is primarily due to the ICMR’s Covid-19 portal, which he said had become a bottleneck.

“Because of the increased number of tests, the system has reached its capacity, and often our data entry operators are not able to upload test results on the portal, which is a necessary step before the results are conveyed to the public,” he said.

For ordinary citizens caught in this gridlock of pending samples, the wait can be excruciating.

Ask 32-year-old Tarun (name changed). A resident of Bengaluru’s West Zone, Tarun sought to be tested in the second week of August after his 56-year-old mother tested positive for the disease on August 8.

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“As I am a primary contact, it was also recommended that I be tested,” Tarun said. He was asymptomatic at the time.

An antigen test conducted on August 9 at the local Primary Health Centre showed him negative.

“I was deemed as having had a high exposure to the disease and my samples were sent for RT-PCR testing. I was advised home quarantine with a promise that the test result will be communicated in two days,” he said, adding that the wait was agonising.

Instead, his test results came after eight days, on Sunday. Thankfully, he was negative.

Many took to social media, demanding faster test results.

On Twitter, a user offered the sample reference number of a person waiting for the result of a sample he had given on Wednesday. “We are following up for Covid test report but no one is taking care, only answering that in 2 hours (they will) send the report. This is not good. His family are in tension,” he said.