Scientists in Germany working around the clock on coronavirus testing

Scientists in Germany are working 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to process the tests of as many people as possible for the novel coronavirus during the pandemic.

According to a Germany-wide survey by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), more than 170 laboratories in Germany tested swabs for Covid-19, the disease caused by the virus, in mid-March. 

According to the RKI, about 350,000 patients were tested last week.

In the Dr. Wisplinghoff laboratory in Cologne, 5,000 coronavirus tests are performed daily, according to the company, more than in any other laboratory in Germany. Its capacities have been significantly increased and around 100 employees are working exclusively on Covid-19 testing. 

However, a bottleneck in working materials is causing laboratories difficulties.

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Among other things, the chemicals needed for the tests as well as the sampling kits are slowly becoming hard to acquire.

“Disposable items such as swabs and plastic plates have become scarce and expensive,” the Cologne laboratory said.

“The economy cannot keep up with the production of reagents. We have five suppliers and receive supplies several times a week. But even that doesn’t always get us there,” Christian Scholz, managing partner of another laboratory in Plauen, Saxony which processes about 9,100 of the tests weekly. (dpa)