KINGSTON, Jamaica — A multi-partner donation of more than 80,000 antigen rapid diagnostic COVID-19 tests was presented to the Ministry of Health and Wellness today to boost Jamaica’s testing capacity.

The Pan-American Health Organization/ World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) in partnership with the Government of the United Kingdom, and the United Nations Multi-Partner Trust Fund delivered the tests as part of a large COVID response package worth over US$1 million.

The donation included nine oxygen concentrators and more than 350,000 pieces of personal protective equipment (PPE) consisting of N95 respirators, along with face shields and medical masks.

The new tests will slash COVID-19 results processing time down from multiple days to just 30 minutes, the parties have said.

They added that after appropriate training, private labs and regional health centres will also be able to perform tests at the point of care, which will decentralise testing, reduce the burden on national laboratories and increase Jamaica’s testing capacity.