• Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

Serological Exams Launched by Rambam

Jan 13, 2021

As the country adheres to the rules and regulations of the third lockdown in the State of Israel, the economy, citizens, and the hospitals are desperately trying to return to their pre-coronavirus lives. On this note, the Rambam Medical Center located in Haifa has decided to launch a system that performs private serological tests, alongside private Covid-19 exams. In addition, the center is responsible for offering numerous services to organizations and companies. 

The director of international and private medical services at Rambam, Tal Abutbul, addressed this recent announcement. He stated that the idea behind serological tests for organizations and companies is to ensure that employers are able to create a work routine for their workers. According to him, employees will not be forced to quarantine, even if they are exposed to the deadly disease because they will have built a natural immunity to it. 

Abutbul further stated that whoever undergoes the serological test will automatically become entitled to a ‘recovery certificate’ awarded by the Health Ministry. He believes that these people will turn out to be assets for employers. 

The serological test is a routine and standard blood test, which checks to see if there are antibodies present to fight coronavirus proteins. The test can result into three outcomes, negative, positive, and unclear. 

If the serological exam results in a ‘negative’ outcome, it means that there are no antibodies residing in the blood. It will prove that the subject never contracted the virus nor is currently infected with it. In addition, the test will be able to confirm that the subject did not come into contact with anyone who had the disease. 

In the case that the result turns out to be ‘positive’, it is an indicator that there are antibodies in the blood of the subject. This could be because the patient previously had the virus, and were either asymptomatic or sick. Perhaps they came into contact with someone who had had the virus. 

If the outcome of the test states ‘unclear’, it is not clear what condition the subject is currently in. In such a situation, the person is told to return after a week so that the test can be conducted once again. 

The director of infection prevention at the medical center, Dr. Hitam Hussein, also talked about the serological test, explaining a couple of things about it. He informed that it is important for everyone to understand that antibodies will not appear in the blood right away. According to him, it takes a minimum of ten days to a maximum of three weeks after being exposed to the coronavirus. However, he did state that no confirmed timeline could be given since this is a relatively new disease. 

In order to get the serological test done, all you need to do is contact the Rambam. They will send a skilled team to your workplace, inclusive of paramedics and nurses. Once the process ends, your test tubes are transferred to the Virology Laboratory of the Rambam to test for results. 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *