Testing equipment arrives in isles

EQUIPMENT which will allow Covid-19 tests to be processed in Shetland has arrived in the isles.

NHS Shetland chief executive Michael Dickson said staff have started receiving training on using the equipment.

The machine should mean that test samples do not need to be flown to the Scottish mainland for processing.

Results will be able to come back quicker, with the hope that it could just take a matter of hours.

The equipment is not yet in operation as the health board waits on kits to enable testing to take place.

“The machine has arrived in Shetland but we are in the process of training staff and validating the machine before tests can be processed locally,” Dickson said.

“We are still able to send tests to the mainland for processing in the meantime.”

Swab tests have been carried out in Shetland and were originally sent to Glasgow before Aberdeen received its own processing facility.

As of 2pm on Tuesday the number of confirmed positive test results in Shetland stood at 45.

However, with testing for the general public currently reserved for those who are clinically ill, the number of people in the isles who have had the virus is expected to be much higher.