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First this morning as omicron takes hold with tens of thousands of cases projected per day - how will our diagnostic laboratories cope?
New analysis from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation suggests Omicron infections in Aotearoa New Zealand could peak at about 80-thousand a day by mid-February, in an outbreak lasting about 3 months.
So how are our labs prepared for such a surge in demand for testing?
Dr Juliet Elvy, Consultant Clinical Microbiologist with Asia Pacific Health Group or APHG, by far the country's largest provider of COVID lab testing in NZ. She's also deputy chair of the Medical Microbiologists network.