A free app which enables people to record their COVID-19 status after undergoing a lateral flow test has launched.
Test To Go, available on Apple and Android devices, records the results of a test instantly and creates a digital certificate.
Developed by Excalibur Healthcare Services and powered by MagnifEye, it could help businesses welcome staff safely back to the office and enable people to travel, participate in leisure activities or attend events with greater confidence.
The Department of Health & Social Care has signed a production contract to use the technology for reading COVID-19 lateral flow diagnostic tests as part of the UK government’s asymptomatic testing programme.
The app offers an ‘enterprise’ setting which is particularly suited for use by employers and managers in the office, travel, events, hospitality, entertainment, sport, leisure, health and social care sectors. There is also a separate setting for individuals.
Excalibur says the app eliminates errors in reading tests: during extensive trials involving over 15,000 samples, the app was up to three times more effective than the human eye in confirming low levels of infection.
Recorded test results are submitted within seconds to the Public Health England national database for monitoring infection levels.
It can also record the user’s PCR test results straight from the laboratory should they be required for travel purposes and has the capacity to add vaccine and serology certification.
The app has been developed through a pioneering partnership between Cambridge-based Excalibur and Sensyne Health plc, the Oxford-based clinical AI company.
A combination of Excalibur’s advanced COVID-19 testing systems and Sensyne’s pioneering algorithm MagnifEye technology has created the digital solution.
Excalibur’s COVID-19 rapid test was developed in its own Cambridge laboratory and then rigorously tested by leading university research laboratories, pharmaceutical companies and international hospital groups. It has been validated in over 12,000 symptomatic and asymptomatic samples and settings and exceeds the Department of Health and Social Care’s acceptable criteria.
The test is also registered with the UK regulator MHRA, and is one of the fastest, most accurate and reliable tests on the market.
Professor Sir Chris Evans, chairman and CEO of Excalibur Healthcare Services, said: “The Test To Go App is one of a kind – and an excellent example of British partnership and innovation.
“It’s a very exciting development and can play an important part in helping businesses and their employees get back to normal.
“People can go to their offices or get on a train or a plane knowing exactly their COVID-19 status. We think this will also be an invaluable tool in the entertainment sector.
“Every effort needs to be made to ensure that infection rates are kept under control. Taking a reliable test and creating a credible digital record of the result will be extremely useful in doing this and it is important that test results are submitted to the national database.
“As an independent company, we have committed to doing this and will are looking to collaborate with other test manufacturers to develop this further.”
CoronavirusCOVID-19