Tough tests for covid-19: With a Covid-19 vaccination reckoned to be at least 18 months down the track, testing remains one of the most important options for combatting the pandemic

“WE HAVE A SIMPLE message for all countries. Test, test, test. Test every suspected case.” These are the words of Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization (WHO), who in March 2020 declared the outbreak of respiratory disease Covid-19 to be a pandemic. Critical of international governmental response to the crisis, the public face of WHO said: “We have not seen an urgent enough escalation in testing, isolation and contact tracing, which is the backbone of the response. And to do that, you must test and isolate. You cannot fight the fire blindfolded.” Neither can significant inroads be made into arresting the pandemic, stressed Ghebreyesus, “if we don't know who is infected”.