A Derby-based company has launched a national, end-to-end workplace rapid COVID-19 testing service to help businesses and organisations operate safely.
Oberoi Consulting has drawn on its expertise in delivering clinical support services to the NHS and pharmaceutical industry to launch the COVID-19 workplace testing service which will be available across the UK.
Oberoi Consulting are listed on the Government website as a private provider and will be working with Ashfield Engage, part of UDG Healthcare plc, experts in customer and patient engagement solutions for the healthcare industry, to support business customers.
The service enables businesses of all sizes to have access to a team of UKAS-accredited professionals who carry out testing programmes in the workplace.
Rapid lateral flow antigen tests that produce results in less than 30 minutes will be used as part of the service. The UK developed tests are the first to be validated in the laboratory by Public Health England.
Oberoi not only undertake the testing but manage waste, full workplace health and safety risk assessments, administration, escalation protocols and reporting procedures to Public Health England.
The service can support businesses in all sectors and all sizes – either administering the programme for businesses with more than 50 employees who have access to rapid lateral flow tests under the government support programme or SMEs who require the complete service including provision of tests.
Oberoi Consulting Lead Pharmacist, Vivek Patel explained that the key purpose of the new service was to provide a highly efficient testing programme that ensured the virus did not spread in the workplace and enabled employees to operate in a safe environment – particularly those who could not work from home.
He said:
“We are aware that many businesses and organisations are currently utilising staff from their own workforce who they have had to train as well as creating time capacity for them to undertake the tests on colleagues.
“Furthermore, employees are involved in the time-consuming management and logistics of this essential service.
“This will not be sustainable as lockdown restrictions start to ease and more employees and customers, for example, return to the workplace.
“The financial, logistical and duty of care burden will only increase as testing to detect COVID-19 for those people not showing symptoms is likely to be a necessity in the workplace for the foreseeable future.”
Vivek concluded:
“Our aim is therefore to provide a complete end-to end, cost-effective solution with trained professionals that will ease the burden on businesses and organisations and enable them to concentrate on recovering from the economic and operational impacts of the pandemic.”