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Blood tests of health care workers and patients as a step toward possible advances in dealing with Covid are announced Monday afternoon in Royal Oak by Beaumont Health.
The biggest U.S. research project of its kind is designed "to better understand whether people who've already had coronavirus can get the disease again, and to determine when it's safe for people to return to work, as well as identify potential plasma donors," the Free Press explains.
Jillian Trueman, left, and Leah Fontana perform validation checks on antibodies-testing technology at Beaumont Lab. (Photo: Beaumont Health)
Beaumont hopes to identify the number of people across its workforce and affiliates who have Covid-19 antibodies without symptoms.
Administrators expect huge staff interest, with at least 30,000 of the 38,000 employees volunteering to have blood drawn at least twice over two or more weeks.
The Freep quotes research vice president Richard Kennedy from a media release before a virtual briefing:
“In addition to answering key questions on infection spread and the percentage of total asymptomatic cases in a community, we intend to relieve anxiety through a better understanding of the spread of the infection across Beaumont Health.” ...
Using a blood test, researchers will look for antibodies the body creates to fight an infection. In the case of Covid-19, antibodies might develop as soon as three to six days after infection. Even after a person recovers from the coronavirus, antibodies remain. In many other infections, those antibodies offer immunity.
A Washington Post headline frames the work grandly: "Michigan hospital system will test workers’ blood in effort to help reopen country."
No pressure.
