our TGA says rapid antigen testing not useful; and advisers to them say we (Australia) does not need them
<danhoff> I think I have the right to show the quotes from John. His words are not copyright to AFR. <end danhoff>"Governments have been lukewarm [about rapid testing]. I think that reflects the advisory groups and not necessarily the utility of the rapid tests themselves," Mr Kelly said."I think that's something that needs to be discussed – how do rapid tests play a part and why is public health so resistant to their usage when other governments are adopting them?"
"We are finding a lot more interest from corporates than we are from public health."
Mr Kelly pointed to ignorance and incumbent business interests.
"The pathology groups within public health and the private sector are made up and represented by pathologists who have grown up with lab-based systems, and there's a natural resistance, because they don't know as much about rapid tests.
"The whole industry is being built around big labs and rapid tests are disruptive to that.
"They've got the ear of policymakers and public health and I think that's why Australia has been quite slow to adopt these new community-facing point of care solutions."
Mr Kelly said the typical use for the antigen test was for high-risk cohorts.
"So that's obviously frontline health workers, anyone interfacing with lots of members of the public, anyone in logistics and hospitality
Mr Kelly said rapid testing would help labour hire employment agencies to screen staff as part of their offering of safe workforces, the resource sector with staff flying in and flying out, and for airports, particularly for interstate travel.
Antigen tests typically have a 90 per cent accuracy rate but Mr Kelly said this was a false comparison.
"We're not saying that an 88 per cent sensitive test is better than 98 per cent sensitive test. We are saying an 88 per cent sensitive test is better than no test being done, which is the situation in a lot of settings because of the turnaround time lapse," Mr Kelly said.
Professor Deborah Williamson from the Doherty Institute is leading the validation work on rapid testing.
"At the moment we are pretty well served by having PCR testing capacity in Australia and you know that that is still the gold standard test. These rapid tests, particularly the antigen tests, have been used extensively overseas but the disease does look quite different overseas, particularly in the United States where the tests have been used widely.
"The tests are at this stage designed to be used in symptomatic individuals in the first few days of symptom onset. That's where the tests have the most utility."
