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The microbiology lab at Kelowna General Hospital has become one of the most advanced in Canada with the gift of a second suite of polymerase chain reaction equipment from the Colin and Lois Pritchard Foundation.
The acquisition gives the lab even greater capacity to accurately diagnose and treat viral influenza and gastro-intestinal bugs.
The highly advanced diagnostic instruments allow microbiologists to detect and identify specific antibiotic resistance gene mutations, bacteria and viruses faster than ever before.
The gift also funded a four-month placement for two UBC Okanagan microbiology co-op students in the lab.
Before PCR technology came to KGH, most viral diagnostics were sent to Vancouver for testing, slowing treatment.
“2017-18 was the heaviest influenza season in 10 years," says Dr. Wilmer, medical microbiologist and discipline director of Interior Health medical microbiology. “We recorded significant improvement in turn-around time, with most testing being performed in one day. For reference, these tests would have taken three to four days before we had PCR.”
The addition of the newest PCR equipment will enable the lab to increase its overall testing capacity, allowing microbiology lab technologists to run multiple different types of specimens at the same time.
“With the acquisition of this equipment, the microbiology lab at KGH now rivals any of the large tertiary hospitals in Canada in terms of our capacity for rapid and accurate diagnosis,” says Doug Rankmore, CEO of the KGH Foundation.
