Different test kits routinely available in the community pharmacy

The urgent demand for large-scale Covid 19 testing has placed significant strain on the healthcare system the past few years. Traditional laboratory testing, though accurate and effective, has proved to be an insufficient solution to the nation’s COVID-19 testing needs due to its lack of efficiency and long wait times. 

However, thanks to the creation of sophisticated testing kits, laboratories are no longer the only solution to COVID-19 testing. Now, testing is quicker and more accessible than ever, and pharmacies are at the forefront of administering it. 

COVID-19 testing is not the only form of Point Of care Testing (POCT) to be embraced by pharmacies, either. Just as COVID-19 testing has become sophisticated enough to bypass traditional laboratories, so have a number of other clinical testing services.

Community Pharmacy offer patients a wide selection of (POCT) services, including:

• Blood Pressure (BP) Screening
• Flu Tests
• Cholesterol Screenings
• Strep Tests
• COVID-19 testing

Numark members (via the Numarknet website or the following link) 2SAN Test Kits also have easy access to the following other competitively priced  2 San test kits available including:

• Vitamin D Deficiency a quick and easy way to screen your levels of Vitamin D using a blood sample.
• Bacterial Vaginosis (Vaginal PH) detects a change in the PH level of the vagina as abnormal results might indicate infection.
• Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) were the strips which are dipped in urine check for a variety of things especially nitrites and leukocytes which are produced by most UTIs.
• Hypothyroidism (Underactive Thyroid) home tests kit allows you to test for the underactive thyroid hormone (also known as hypothyroidism) by using just a finger prick of human blood.
• Stomach Ulcer (H.pylori) is a home finger prick test that detects the antibodies to Helicobacter pylori associated with Peptic Ulcers.
• Menopause Symptoms test Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) is a urine testing system to check FSH levels if a lady is showing early menopausal (perimenopausal) symptoms e.g. hot flushes or night sweats.
• Male Fertility (Sperm Concentration) uses a device similar looking to a Covid 19 lateral flow test to measure semen.
• Iron Deficiency (Ferritin) is a home finger prick test that detects iron levels in the blood.
• Drugs of Abuse self test provides rapid information regarding the possible use of commonly abused drugs within 5 minutes. It is a single step urine test to detect cocaine, amphetamine, cannabis, methamphetamine (including ecstasy), opiates (including heroin) and benzodiazepines.
• Bowel Cancer Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT)  requires only a small stool sample, and uses the faecal immunochemical test method (FIT) to give you an easy-to-read visual result usually in less than 10 minutes.