LUCENA CITY, Quezon: The first Molecular Diagnostic Laboratory 2+ in this city will undergo its final phase, the proficiency testing on Wednesday for accreditation from the Department of Health (DoH). The laboratory is to be run and managed by Lucena United Doctors Hospital and Medical Center (LUDHMC) in Barangay Isabang of this city. Last week, the Lucena City government represented by Mayor Roderick Alcala, Quezon province represented by Gov. Danilo Suarez and LUDHMC President Dr. Gerardo Carmelo Salazar signed a memorandum of agreement for the collaborative project for this laboratory. Salazar said the city and provincial governments would provide the staff of the laboratory with personal protective equipment (PPE) and all the samples from the Covid-19 swab test processed by the city and provincial health offices shall be brought to this laboratory. The laboratory will have an initial capacity of 90 sample tests per day and is set to be operational by Thursday once it is approved by the DoH. He added that this is a collaborative private-public partnership effort wherein the city and provincial governments shall provide the PPE for the health workers in the laboratory as well as budget for the testing kit for each swab sample and PhilHealth shall shoulder the procedural expenses.
