New flu tests can cut bed-blocking and ease burden of hospital staff

A PIONEERING test that can determine if a patient has flu within 20 minutes can cut bed-blocking related to the virus by more than 80 per cent, trials have found.

Pilot programmes in two NHS hospitals found the technology eased winter chaos by enabling those wrongly suspected of having flu to go home earlier.

Currently, patients usually have to wait several days to find out if they have flu rather than a different condition because samples have to be sent to external laboratories for analysis.

In the meantime, they are likely to be placed in isolation, taking up precious space during the busiest time of the year for the health service.

However, the new test involves medical staff taking a single nasal swab that can be analysed in a machine in the hospital.

Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust began using the cobas Liat system in January this year. Staff there found that out of 277 tests over four months, 128 (46 per cent) came back positive, leading to quicker diagnosis and more efficient use of side rooms. The number of blocked beds dropped from an average of 11 pre-test to two post-test, and the mean number of patients with flu in a bay dropped from 12.3 to 2.7.

Roche Diagnostics, which manufactured the system, said it could save £24million a year if introduced across the NHS. The test is also in use at the Kingston Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in London. There, the faster diagnosis meant the 33 per cent of patients who tested negative and were otherwise well were discharged the same day, avoiding unnecessary overnight admissions.

Berenice Constable, head of nursing at the trust, said: “This has had a big impact on improving timely treatment for patients, supporting appropriate isolation procedures and ultimately improving patient experience.

“It has helped to ensure beds are not closed unnecessarily and has supported clinical decision making.”

Flu affects 5-10per cent of adults and 20-30per cent of children each year, peaking from January to March. Last year’s season was the worst for seven years with 15,000 flu-related deaths – the annual average is around 8,000.

Geoff Twist, managing director of Roche Diagnostics, said: “I am delighted the cobas Liat test has received such good feedback.

“I am particularly happy that this helps us quickly relieve the stress for people of not knowing whether themselves or a loved one has the flu, and swiftly enabling their medical care.”

At Kingston, 1,526 tests were carried out over a 19-week period. Only 479 came back positive, with 65 per cent of suspected cases discharged or not requiring initial isolation.