Local Diagnostic laboratory donates FREE PCR Covid-19 Tests to Hawaii’s Underserved Homeless Population

Honolulu, HI – June 25th, 2021 – Capture Diagnostics, a local diagnostic testing company, and Visby Medical, an infectious disease diagnostic company, today announced the donation of fast and accurate PCR testing devices for COVID-19 to the Hawaii Institute for Human Services (IHS), the oldest, largest, and most comprehensive human services agency focused exclusively on ending and preventing homelessness in Hawaii. As a result of this generous donation, IHS will be able to provide COVID-19 diagnostic results in a timely manner to aid one of Hawaii’s most vulnerable and marginalized population, our homeless community.

Homeless populations present unique challenges to providing care, especially regarding a viral pandemic. High wait times with traditional testing result in loss of occupancy in shelters that are working to maintain COVID-free zones. This donation uses the Visby Medical COVID-19 Point of Care test, a diagnostic tool that was granted Emergency Use Authorization by the U.S. FDA to help fight against the pandemic.

“Previously, testing was taking up to three days to return a result, which impacted a patient’s ability to enter a shelter risking further exposure to COVID-19 in that wait time,” said John D’Orazio, Founder and CEO of Capture Diagnostics. “With access to Visby’s COVID-19 diagnostic, Capture has been able to secure test results within 30 minutes, drastically improving the speed of care provided to Hawaii’s homeless population. Anyone now entering the shelter has peace of mind about any potential exposure and allows the shelter to maintain a COVID-free zone, a tremendous benefit to our community.”

Capture Diagnostics selected Visby Medical as a diagnostic partner because they solved the challenge of access to timely and accurate results with an instrument-free, single-use (disposable), polymerase chain reaction test, also known as PCR, the gold standard for the detection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19. While traditional PCR machines are known to be extremely large and expensive pieces of equipment, Visby’s device fits in the palm of your hand, and is easily deployable – therefore accessible – almost anywhere, making it a perfect solution to a complex community situation.

Capture Diagnostics, LLC, provides an end-to-end solution that can grow with your organization’s changing needs. Our pre-engineered platform, powered by LumiSight, is built for change and seamlessly connects mobile testing labs, LIMS data, and payment processing systems to facilitate registration and results. Capture Diagnostics recognizes the need to give back to the community we work in. Capture and Visby are grateful to have the opportunity to provide these tests and help Hawaii’s IHS manage their patients in need.