The ‘SARS-CoV-2’ application for COVID Test Management is a subsystem of the ‘MediLab LIS’ laboratory information system. Supports a comprehensive COVID testing process, from attendance, sampling, referral input and management, testing and PCR analysis, testing – final approval, to printing and sending results to the examinee. Simultaneously it updates the National COVID Database, through interoperability.

National COVID Register

The application may send to the National Register COVID-19, a mass PCR and Rapid Test results, of citizens who come voluntarily for examination, with or without referral from a Health Unit or from EODY.

In order to send the above results the Unique Control Number issued by the COVID-19 register or the EODY or the unique Passenger Locator Form (PLF) must have been completed, either for domestic or foreign citizens entering the country’s borders. The results are sent after they have been properly approved, based on the procedures of the laboratory. The examinee must have been identified using AMKA, Identity Card Number or Passport Number. Additional fields are required depending on the type of authentication.

It is also necessary that the user-practitioner have prior declare to IDIKA his account number, in order to be able to submit the results through the COVID API application. The tests that are to be sent, must have been completed and approved, in ‘MediLab LIS’ application or in the COVID API application, using the referral number or the Unique Passenger Locator Form (PLF) number.

Test referral for SARS-CoV-2

The following image shows the referral form containing:

1) Barcode which is the reference number issued as a Unique Control Number (given by the COVID-19 register or EODY) and
2) Unique Passenger Locator Form (PLF) Number which is the code received by each traveler who completes the PLF before entering Greece.

The application allows, especially for COVID examinations, the automatic collection of the sample without having to scan the barcode, which is the proper procedure of ‘MediLab LIS’ in order to set the samples as ‘received by the lab’. At the same time, to facilitate the data entry of the result, the default value of the result is set to the value ‘Negative’. The laboratory should then change the result of the positive samples. It is obvious that this way the application is reducing the workload.

In addition, when the result is received from an external refference laboratory, the HL7 message transfers the test order number of the external laboratory (ref. Number). This number is recorded in the database so that the origin of the samples can be checked.

Data requested by the Health Ministry

The following information is requested by the Ministry of Health:

• Unique Case Code: It is the unique tracking code of the laboratory.
• Name and Surname of the examinee
• Referral Number: Indicated on the referral form, which accompanies the sample.
• AMKA / Identification Number: The patient’s identification (AMKA, passport number, identity card)
• Sample Date: The date on which the sample was taken.
• Issue Date: The date the audit result was issued
• Result: The result of the test. One of the following values should be selected: 1. Positive 2. Negative 3. Unspecified 4. Inappropriate Sample
• Diagnostic Method: The diagnostic method applied. One of the following values should be selected: 1. Molecular Testing with real time PCR of saliva samples, 2. Molecular Testing with real time PCR of clinical respiratory samples, 3. Rapid antigen detection test on respiratory samples
• Requested From: The health unit / individual that requested the test.

In addition to the above, the application for the Management of COVID examinations, includes the export to excel, of the examinations that were carried out, according to the model of the Ministry of Health. It also supports automatic export of the result form in PDF format, through the web Service included in the application.

Finally, ‘MediLab LIS’ also supports the automatic sending of e-mails with the results to the examinees. For more information see “e-mailing test results“.