Antigen Rapid Testing

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Border entry and pre-event Antigen Rapid Testing (ART) system

Background

To facilitate Singapore’s reopening, antigen rapid tests (ART) were to be administered at the point of entry to Singapore borders and at large-scale events. Faster than the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) swab tests, which take between 1-3 days for test results to be available, ART tests take under 30 minutes. To enable testing at the borders and at events, there was a need for an end-to-end solution that could register individuals being tested, uniquely tag them to a test kit, collect their test results, and thereafter send results in a timely way to both attendees and public health authorities. As public health actions could be taken for antigen positive cases, it was critical for both patients and the Ministry of Health to be notified of results in real-time.

Solution

We created an intuitive registration system that contained a QR code linked to an online form for patients to uniquely identify themselves and associate their identity with test kit results and bar code stickers for swab test staff to serialise test kits.

This registration form and the test cartridge reader is integrated with the Covid-19 Management Backbone. Upon completion of an ART test, patients are notified in real-time on an online checker and via SMS notifications.
Public health authorities are notified in real-time when an antigen-positive case is detected.

Impact

Administered over 1 million Antigen Rapid Tests at border checkpoints and large-scale events
Supported public health authorities in timely conveyance of antigen-positve patients

Team