Respiratory Outbreak Mitigation in Long-Term Care Using Point-of-Care Testing

🩺 Protocol Summary

Outbreaks of seasonal respiratory viruses can spread rapidly in long-term care homes. Timely results for diagnostic tests remains a challenge for respiratory viruses due to the logistics of using a reference laboratory with delays leading to missed opportunities to implement virus-specific control measures to interrupt transmission resulting in larger outbreaks. Use of a point-of-care testing platform is a potential solution that provides faster results, but it is uncertain whether this translates into benefits for long-term care residents. This trial aims to assess whether rapid test results for respiratory pathogens (Influenza, Coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) and Respiratory Syncytial Virus) can impact the number and size of respiratory virus outbreaks in long-term care homes.

Primary Research Facility: Michael Garron Hospital (Toronto, Ontario)

Review these 3 basic logistical and protocol criteria extracted from the public NIH record. (This is a preliminary logistical checklist, not an official clinical eligibility determination).

📍 Primary Site Map

Site: Michael Garron Hospital — Toronto, Ontario

This protocol is enrolling participants across multiple clinical centers:

💰 Clinical Trial Costs & Insurance Coverage

Coverage for clinical trial participation varies depending on your health insurance policy, state legislation, and whether specific procedures are investigational research or routine medical care. Under federal law (Affordable Care Act § 2709), health insurers generally cannot drop coverage or refuse to pay for routine patient care costs incurred in approved clinical trials.

💡 Always ask the study coordinator for the trial's official Informed Consent Form, which outlines all sponsor-funded research items versus procedures billed to your insurance.