Last week, three of our colleagues packed a fully functioning laboratory into a set of flight cases and boarded a plane bound for one of the most remote islands on Earth.
Saint Helena, an overseas territory of the United Kingdom in the South Atlantic, had become part of the hantavirus outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship. When the island government asked for help, the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST), funded with UK aid by the Department of Health and Social Care, was ready.
Within 24 hours, UKHSA microbiologists Clara Milroy and Kimberley Steeds, along with infection prevention and control expert Anthony Twyman, set off for St Helena taking with them a mobile laboratory capable of performing PCR tests to detect the Andean strain of hantavirus. They will be on the island for the next 8 weeks.
This is the first time the UK-PHRST mobile rapid response laboratory has been deployed for use during an active outbreak and is the culmination of years of investment in preparedness.
The implementation of the mobile laboratory means that those affected living in Saint Helena will not have to wait for samples to travel thousands of kilometers for analysis. Faster results mean a clearer picture of the outbreak, which will allow for better and faster protection for the island community.
In addition to lab work, Anthony is working directly with Jamestown General Hospital to help them prepare ahead of any confirmed cases. This means training clinical staff in hantavirus case management so that healthcare workers are well protected while providing care and reducing the risk of spread in the broader community.
This is exactly the type of specialized diagnostic capability the mobile laboratory was designed for: deployable anywhere an emerging infectious disease outbreak occurs, no matter how remote.
This is what the quick response looks like. We thank our colleagues from Santa Helena and Tenerife for working with us and sharing their experience.
