11 October 2020: Update on The Corona Pandemic – All of our Neighbouring countries order millions of rapid coronavirus tests, Belgium none

11 October 2020: Update on The Corona Pandemic – An average of more than 3,000 people per day tested positive for Covid-19 in Belgium over the past week, with a peak on Tuesday of 5,048 positive tests in one day. Also, in France the Covid-19 figures are increasing rapidly, with a new daily record of 20,000 confirmed cases in the last 24 hours. The Netherlands set yesterday a new single-day record with 6,504 more people testingpositive for SARS-CoV-2. I don’t have the figures for Germany at hand but it’s clear, we’re all in the same boat. The only difference is that all of neighbouring countries are ordering millions of rapid Sars-Cov-2 antigen testsand Belgium has so far not ordered any. The rapid antigen tests are much simpler and faster than the currently-recommended PCR tests. Based on my more than 30 years of experience in the diagnostic industry, I’m advocating for a testing strategy with a first-line rapid screening test with a high diagnostic sensitivityfollowed by a consecutive confirmatory test with a high specificity (PCR) on all positive samples. In the past this strategy has proven that it reduces the overall diagnostic cost, personnel time and analytical run times. In Belgium we are still validating these tests and deciding how to best use them. Why do we need to redo the work? If anybody is reading this or if anybody disagree or has the answer, please let me know. Meanwhile, to overcome my frustration with so much unnecessary bureaucracy and national regulation, I continue to document the beauty of my hometown. Today’s picture is from the gothic Saint Nicholas church – Ghent, Belgium