This Portsmouth firm can tell you if you've had Covid within 15 minutes

Farlington-based Future Healthcare has teamed up with NTL Biologica, an Oxfordshire-based biotech company, to provide mobile testing throughout the UK.

The test enables people to find out if they have previously had Covid-19, with results delivered within 15 minutes.

It detects Covid-19 antibodies in blood, through a pin prick blood test, proving if people have previously been infected with the virus.

Peter Toon, director of Future Healthcare, said: ‘We carry out the majority of our tests on people who may have had a nasty cough back at the start of the year before we knew anything about the virus and have never tested positive but want to know if that nasty cough was, in fact, Covid.

‘We also test people who have never experienced symptoms and have never had a positive test result but are curious to know if they were ever asymptomatic carriers.

‘The main message we send out to people we test is that a positive antibody test result does not equal immunity and these people should still ensure they do all they can to avoid catching the virus again.’

Prior to the lockdown, the firm was testing gym members at the David Lloyd gyms across the country, including Port Solent.

The idea of the tests is to allow people, who suspect they had the virus but were never tested, to find out whether the suspected illness was Covid or not.

Peter said that the majority of people get tested out of curiosity and the company strongly advises against using a positive result as a substitute for government guidelines such as social distancing, wearing face coverings and practicing personal hygiene.

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The company is due to host open days so that people can get tested, starting on Wednesday, December 2, from midday until 8pm at Futura Healthcare, Unit D1, Railway Triangle, Farlington.

Peter said: ‘We are keen to show how easy it can be to carry the virus without knowing it and therefore how easy it can be to spread it unknowingly.’

Tests cost £60. To book go to futurahelathcare.co.uk or call (023) 9400 3825.

Future Healthcare, based in Walton Road, Farlington, also offers Covid-19 PCR tests and provides high-quality medical-grade PPE to workplaces.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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