The proficiency test is the last step before the provincial government’s containerized polymerase chain reaction (PCR) laboratory can be fully operational, according to the information cluster head of the Capitol.
In a telephone interview on Tuesday, August 18, 2020, Kevin Damalerio told The Bohol Tribune that the swab samples from the Research Institute of Tropical Medicine (RITM) are being awaited here for the proficiency test of the containerized PCR laboratory.
The proficiency test is seen as the final step prior to the issuance of the license to operate of the PCR laboratory owned by the province, Damalerio said.
Once the license to operate will be issued, the PCR laboratory based in Tagbilaran City, will accept swab samples from all over Bohol, similar to what the molecular laboratory inside Gov. Celestino Gallares Memorial Hospital (GCGMH).
The provincial government’s containerized PCR laboratory arrived in Bohol from Manila last July 17, 2020. Gov. Arthur Yap announced the plan of the province to acquire a containerized PCR laboratory on June 12, 2020.