BD Awards Educational Grant for Point of Care Testing Pilot in Alberta

MISSISSAUGA, ON (Jan. 27, 2023) – BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) (NYSE: BDX), a leading global medical technology company, provided educational grant funding towards 19 to Zero for a point-of-care testing pilot in the primary care setting.

In addition to a monetary grant, several BD Veritor™ Plus System Analyzers and BD Veritor™ System for Rapid Detection Assays have been provided to support point-of-care diagnostic testing for SARS-CoV-2, Flu A and B, RSV, Group A Strep and Triplex (COVID-19, Flu A and B).

The program was signed in April 2022 amid the rapid emergence of the Omicron variant as point-of-care testing has been rapidly adopted and paved the way for the adoption of broader testing needs in detecting other infectious diseases like influenza or RSV. The pilot program is expected to continue in 2023, pursuing these objectives:

• Rollout of point-of-care pilots in urban and rural settings in Alberta to identify pain points and ways to optimize the usage of point-of-care tests.
• Develop guidelines for primary care settings on the use of various point-of-care testing for COVID-19, Group A Strep, RSV and influenza.
• Sharing of the program evaluation to be used in other primary care settings that seek to implement point-of-care.

The areas of use for point-of-care tests have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic to support the need for faster screening against pathogens. Developing pilots in different healthcare settings, such as primary care and peri-clinical care centres for immigration and settlement, broaden the know-how and usability of point-of-care testing to improve clinical diagnosis, patient access and overall health system success.

Dr. Jia Hu, CEO of 19 to Zero, said, “We are excited to partner with BD on this important project to make point-of-care testing more accessible to groups within our community. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen the critical role point-of-care testing can play in diagnosing respiratory illnesses quickly. As we continue to see cases of COVID-19, influenza and RSV, it is crucial that we have the proper tools to identify new cases in our community rapidly. This work would not be possible without the support and partnership of our community partners and local primary care networks.”

Ivy Parks, President of BD-Canada, said, “We are pleased to support 19 to Zero through the educational grant program to serve primary care patients and communities who would have challenges accessing health care. As we are going through another surge in seasonal viruses, these grants and testing tools will positively impact the diagnosis of respiratory illnesses in Alberta.”