Pilot project to screen for COVID-19 by gargling a success in the Montérégie
A pilot project to screen for COVID-19 by gargling in an elementary school in Saint-Hubert, on Montreal's South Shore, has produced such encouraging results that it will soon be extended to all elementary schools in the Montérégie region, The Canadian Press has learned.
The project hopes to combat absenteeism, as students and teachers would no longer have to leave the premises for testing if they came into contact with SARS-CoV-2.
"We wanted to take the testing out of the testing clinics," said Dr. David-Martin Milot, public health and preventive medicine specialist with the CISSS de la Montérégie-Centre. "The gargle method is very easy to implement."
Eventually, schools may be able to organize screenings on their own, he adds, with materials provided by public health.
The samples collected will then be sent to a lab for analysis.
The pilot project worked "very, very well," Milot said -- though it was a simulation and there were no actual cases of COVID-19 at the school at that time.
In addition to parents and children not having to travel, clinics also benefited from the project because they did not have to accommodate groups of children, allowing them to focus on other patients.
"It's a win-win-win scenario for the principals, public health and the screening teams," said Milot.
An information campaign for parents will accompany the deployment of the gargle screening in participating schools in the Montérégie.
The provincial health and education ministers also recently announced that rapid tests for COVID-19 would be implemented in schools in ten regions of the province, including Montreal, Laval and the Montérégie.
A recent study led by Dr. Caroline Quach-Thanh concluded that rapid tests, when children are symptomatic, may prevent them from being sent home unnecessarily.
Rapid tests are also considered more effective when the viral load is high -- when the contagion is at its greatest -- and should be reserved for symptomatic individuals.
"Unlike a rapid screening test, (gargling) does not give an immediate result, for example, in a school," explains Dr. Annie-Claude Labbé of Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital. "Quick results are an advantage of rapid testing and that's why I say that the two could work together. Every little solution can contribute its part to solve a bigger problem and that's how we're going to get out of this crisis."
-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Nov. 3, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Police investigating shooting outside of Drake's Bridle Path mansion: source
Toronto police are investigating a shooting that took place outside of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion early Tuesday morning, a source tells CP24.
There's actually no such thing as vegetables. Here's why you should eat them anyway
The rumours are true: Vegetables aren't real — that is, in botany, anyway. While the term fruit is recognized botanically as anything that contains a seed or seeds, vegetable is actually a broad umbrella term.
'It looked so legit': Ontario man pays $7,700 for luxury villa found on Booking.com, but the listing was fake
An Ontario man says he paid more than $7,700 for a luxury villa he found on a popular travel website -- but the listing was fake.
The Met Gala was in full bloom with Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, Mindy Kaling among the standout stars
The Met Gala and its fashionista A-listers on Monday included Jennifer Lopez, Zendaya and a parade of others in a swirl of flora and fauna looks on a green-tinged carpet lined by live foliage.
3 Indian nationals accused of murdering Hardeep Singh Nijjar facing court in B.C.
Three Indian nationals accused of murdering Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar are due to face court Tuesday over the killing that triggered a major diplomatic rift with India.
Israeli forces seize Rafah border crossing in Gaza, putting ceasefire talks on knife's edge
Israeli tanks seized control of Gaza's vital Rafah border crossing on Tuesday as Israel brushed off urgent warnings from close allies and moved into the southern city even as cease-fire negotiations with Hamas remained on a knife's edge.
Canadian cadets rock mullets and place second at U.S. military competition
Sporting mullets, Canadian Armed Forces officer cadets placed second in an annual military skills competition in the U.S.
Highlights from the 2024 Met Gala exhibit: Sleeping Beauty would wake up for these gowns
Sure, she was a royal princess and all. But there’s no way Sleeping Beauty — either before or after her nap — ever had quite the fabulous wardrobe that’s been assembled at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Noelia Voigt resigns as Miss USA, citing her mental health
Noelia Voigt, who was crowned Miss USA in November 2023, has announced she is resigning from her role, saying the decision is in the best interest of her mental health.