Emirates' COVID-19 detection system reaches over two million tests

Health officials in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) reported that the country's testing programme for coronavirus cases exceeded two million tests, demonstrating the Gulf nation's hard work to tackle a problem that is plaguing the world and has already left hundreds of thousands dead and millions of cases diagnosed worldwide.

The UAE Minister of Health and Prevention, Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Nasser al-Owais, noted that the UAE had over two million examinations throughout the territory to detect possible cases of COVID-19 disease, having already conducted 2,440,493 analyses.

The government spokesman also spoke of another 600 new cases of recovery from symptoms of COVID-19 after receiving the necessary medical care since their admission to hospital centres, bringing the number of people recovered from the disease to 15,657. Meanwhile, in the last 24 hours, 41,202 new tests for early coronavirus infections were carried out by the country's health personnel.

On the other hand, the Ministry of Health and Prevention announced this Sunday that it has conducted more than 35,000 additional tests of COVID-19 using the latest generation of medical testing methods, as reported by the Emirati news agency WAM.

In an official statement, the ministry said it aims to expand the scope of testing throughout the country to facilitate the early detection of cases of coronavirus and provide the necessary treatment.

As part of its intensified testing campaign, the Ministry of Health recorded 781 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the total number of cases in the United Arab Emirates to 30,300. According to the official ministerial note, those infected are of various nationalities, are in stable condition and receive appropriate care.

The number of deaths has reached 248 since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. 

The Ministry wished all patients a speedy recovery, asking the public to cooperate with the health authorities and to comply with all precautionary measures, particularly social distancing, to ensure their safety and protection.

This continues the Emirates' outstanding and commendable fight against the coronavirus with a view to curbing its spread. A campaign both internally and externally, as the Arab country is working with many countries to tackle the problem.

As the latest major advance in this area, the UAE introduced a new laser-based technology that makes it possible to perform mass screening in a short period of time to detect whether a person is a carrier of the virus that causes COVID-19. This is a tool developed by QuantLase Imaging Lab, the medical research department of the International Holdings Company (IHC) group.

This step strengthens the United Arab Emirates' position as an innovative benchmark in health research and the fight against COVID-19. This new development makes it possible to test patients suspected of being infected by the coronavirus in a few seconds and potentially identify carriers before they become infectious. 

Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Nasser al-Owais himself referred positively to the progress: "We are always following innovations related to the early and rapid detection of COVID-19. The government is very interested in supporting initiatives that help the health system in the UAE. Health officials have been following the progress of the QuantLase trials to test this equipment. We are proud to see a technology that works and will help better protect our people". 

This is in addition to other developments that were presented several weeks ago, such as coronavirus testing done on-the-fly without even having to get out of the car, or smart helmets used by the police to quickly and massively detect people with high temperatures. It also includes important initiatives such as field hospitals, like the one located in the World Trade Center in Dubai.

Meanwhile, the Emirates is playing a major global role in combating the coronavirus and in international cooperation to tackle COVID-19. The Middle Eastern country is doing a lot to support other nations in mitigating the effects of the dreaded coronavirus and its collaboration is now reaching 47 countries.

The aid provided so far to these 47 nations consists of about 530 tons of medical supplies and food; plus, assistance related to more than 523,000 health personnel, according to data provided by the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.