The Israeli business sector embraces instant coronavirus tests

Sofia is a groundbreaking technology from the American company Quidel that allows 40 tests to be performed per hour.

By ABIGAIL ADLER
Updated: DECEMBER 11, 2020 08:56
Sofia's instant coronavirus test can deliver results in 15 minutes (photo credit: SOFIA ISRAEL)
Sofia's instant coronavirus test can deliver results in 15 minutes
(photo credit: SOFIA ISRAEL)
With the gradual opening of the economy, the business sector is adopting Sofia Technology for instant coronavirus tests that deliver results within 15 minutes.
Sofia is a groundbreaking technology from the American company Quidel that allows 40 tests to be performed per hour,  providing immediate answers to employees or customers being tested on the spot, regardless of the laboratory. An immediate negative result means that it is safe to continue the work routine as long as other protective measures are practiced such as wearing masks, social distance and hand washing.
The cost of Sofia's technology is about one third of a standard laboratory test (PCR).
Only recently has a new and dramatic study from Harvard University determined that performing rapid tests can significantly reduce the percentage of infections. The researchers stressed that this is a high enough rate to eradicate the epidemic within six weeks.
"The rapid tests actually identify who is infected and who is not and are particularly effective in the stages of the disease in which the patient infects others," said Dr. Michael Mina, a lecturer in epidemiology at Harvard University and one of the researchers in a new study that revives the economy.
Large companies can purchase a portable Sofia device directly from the Remipharm Group, the country's representative of the American company Quidel. In small companies, gyms, marketing chains and cultural institutions, the tests can be performed through a medical services company such as Salus from the Novolog group or the test company Medicheck, which come with medical staff and Sofia devices.
"Sofia Technology is a risk management tool for employers," said Salus Medical Center CEO Yael Schneidman.
"The test allows for ongoing activity. Within 15 minutes, a result with a high level of certainty is obtained that allows for ongoing operation of the business while continuously caring for the health of employees or customers and can assist in epidemiological investigations against the continued outbreak of the virus. Sofia's accessibility and availability and its groundbreaking technology enable us to provide an immediate service to employers for their employees. "
Medicheck CEO Dorit Vardimon shared the following:
"In a period of business uncertainty, Sofia makes it possible to efficiently and immediately return the business sector to a safe routine alongside the constraints of coronavirus. The fact that this is the world's first rapid coronavirus antigen test approved by the US FDA gives us an advantage here in Israel, and gives us the ability to harness smart technology for the benefit of businesses in Israel at an immediate pace. While standard coronavirus tests are more accurate, their decoding process is lengthy, so the subjects wait several days and the answers are received in retrospect, so it is not suitable for the fast-paced businesses."
Indeed, Sofia is not meant to replace the PCR tests performed in the laboratory, but rather to serve as a response to mass tests while taking advantage of the technology of answering in real time.
The Health Ministry stated:  "The Sofia device showed a very high specificity for coronavirus with an adjustment of 99.9%. The World Health Organization's requirement is sensitivity of over 80% and specificity over 97%."
Further validation processes are still underway in the field, in order to prevent rare mistakes in the execution of  protocol.