Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen (centre, in black) gives certificates of merit to individuals and the National Institute for Hygiene and Epidemiology for successfully cultivating and isolating the novel coronavirus (Photo: tuoitre.vn)
Hanoi (VNA) - Tests for the novel coronavirus (nCoV) could be run at provincial hospitals in the near future, said Professor Dang Duc Anh, director of the National Institute for Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE).
Before transferring the technology to conduct these tests, the NIHE would set up training courses and assess infrastructure, especially biological safety in laboratories, he said.
Deputy Minister of Health Do Xuan Tuyen noted that the transfer would be conducted only when hospitals had assessed their infrastructure.
Last week, the NIHE successfully cultivated and isolated nCov, which causes the acute respiratory disease (COVID-19) first reported in Wuhan City in China.
The NIHE was now in a position to master coronavirus testing, said Anh. The work would support epidemic prevention and control.
With the isolated virus, the NIHE has started to develop test kits for quick diagnosis.
At present, 22 hospitals are capable of conducting tests for coronavirus.
The Ministry of Health (MoH) highly appreciated the cultivation and isolation of the virus, and said it was a big success.
On February 12, Deputy Minister Tuyen presented certificates of merits to the NIHE and its six researchers for their dedicated work.
Vietnam can now conduct thousands of tests per day if necessary, said Tuyen.
At present, Vietnam was one of four countries which had successfully cultivated and isolated the nCoV, besides Japan, China and Australia, according to the MoH./.
