Dis-Chem closes Covid-19 testing facilities due to backlog
Dis-Chem has decided to close its drive-through testing facilities due to the massive backlog in obtaining test results from laboratories.
The retailer made the announcement on Friday.
It said the surge in infections in Gauteng has put has put severe strain on the capacity of testing labs.
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"Which in turn, has impacted the turnaround time for Dis-Chem’s test results.
"Gauteng alone has seen a dramatic rise in the number of Covid-19 infections and in just two weeks‚ the number of infections has increased a staggering 283%," says Lizeth Kruger, Dis-Chem’s national clinic manager.
“We are constantly following up with the various laboratories, but they are being forced to prioritise urgent hospital tests.
"The number of labs that can do the tests is limited and we are spreading our load across as many as possible. Another factor affecting the speed of testing and obtaining results is the reduced number of flights around the country, so transporting tests to the labs from outlying cities and other remote stations is delayed.”
It is unclear if Dis-Chem would resume testing in the future.