Toronto lab processes its one millionth COVID-19 test

The Shared Hospital Laboratory (SHL) was one of the first in Ontario to obtain a COVID-19 testing license. Serving North York General, Scarborough Hospital, Michael Garron and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre along with their associated care homes, the lab processed its first COVID test on March 13, 2020.

Since then, SHL has upgraded their facility and now has the capacity to process 10,000 COVID-19 tests every day. The one-millionth test was processed on January 11.

“Working tirelessly to conduct these tests and grow the lab's capacity, the staff showed their commitment to doing their part to combat the COVID-19 pandemic,” said SHL’s medical director Dr. Kevin Katz.

SHL is a publicly funded corporation, and one of the largest bacteriology labs in Ontario.

“We started with just 39 staff and at last check have 187 employees. Our staff are incredibly dedicated – facing new challenges every day, sometimes every hour – all without missing a beat,” said clinical microbiologist Dr. Christie Vermeiren.

Source: toronto.com