Toronto, Ontario, March 04, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- LifeLabs is proud to support the Ontario government with the ongoing operation of in-person learning at child care centres, elementary and secondary schools across the province. To ensure schools remain safe, LifeLabs will operate hub collection sites for COVID-19 testing for asymptomatic students and their family members, teachers, and staff in Ontario schools.
Asymptomatic testing in schools acts as an important layer of protection that helps to track and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Increased testing may also reduce stress and anxiety related to the virus by identifying cases early and managing outbreaks to help ensure that schools remain safe for all to learn and work in.
“As the Ontario government has previously stated, keeping students in class is a top priority,” says Charles Brown, President and CEO of LifeLabs. “We are proud to support this important initiative in a manner that is well-suited for the unique needs of students and their families.”
Designated schools will be selected to host the hub collection site for neighbouring school participants, allowing for streamlined access. At these designated locations, participants will be tested on a voluntary basis using either PCR (polymerase chain reaction) or rapid antigen testing. LifeLabs will work with the school boards and schools to schedule the hub collection site visit and the school board or school will inform parents/legal guardians ahead of the scheduled visits.
The school-based COVID-19 specimen collection sites will be employed by professionally-trained individuals who will help provide a safe and easy testing experience, backed by a lab testing infrastructure of the highest quality. All participants can walk-in or pre-register for the testing.
“Allowing for schools to re-open in a safe and healthy manner is vital for our children and our communities,” adds Brown. “I want to acknowledge the tremendous effort from our employees and government partners for launching this initiative to help prevent or track the spread of COVID-19 in schools.”
LifeLabs continues to play a significant role in the COVID-19 testing strategy across the country and recently completed over 1.5 million COVID-19 molecular diagnostic tests for Canadians and their health care providers. Recently, LifeLabs also expanded its collection services to offer COVID-19 PCR molecular testing at a limited number of locations for both asymptomatic and symptomatic individuals.
To help provide a seamless testing process for students and their families, LifeLabs is working with Thrive Health.
“The pan-Canadian team at Thrive Health is thrilled to be partnering with LifeLabs to support the Ministry of Health in Ontario to safely get kids back to class,” adds David Helliwell, Co-founder and CEO, Thrive Health. “We founded the company to use technology to help people through health care journeys, and these days the journeys include every trip to school."
More information about COVID-19 testing at LifeLabs can be found at www.lifelabs.com/covid19
About LifeLabs
LifeLabs is Canada’s leading provider of laboratory diagnostic information and digital health connectivity systems, enabling patients and health care practitioners to diagnose, treat, monitor, and prevent disease. We support 20 million patient visits annually and conduct over 100 million laboratory tests through leading edge technologies and our 6,000 talented and dedicated employees. We are a committed innovator in supporting Canadians to live healthier lives, operating Canada’s first commercial genetics lab, and the country’s largest online patient portal, with more than 5 million Canadians receiving their results online. LifeLabs is 100% Canadian owned by OMERS Infrastructure, the infrastructure investment manager of one of Canada’s largest defined benefit pension plans. Learn more at lifelabs.com.
About Thrive Health
Thrive is on a mission to change what healthcare looks like in Canada, providing technology that uncovers vital insights about your health and enables operational efficiency for a happier, healthier system. Throughout the pandemic, Thrive has supported over 13 million Canadians with the BC and Canada COVID-19 apps and self-assessment tools built in partnership with Health Canada and the Government of British Columbia.