Metro Atlanta lab ready to join the fight against monkeypox
We were taken inside a Metro Atlanta lab that’s now ready to join the fight against monkeypox.
During our exclusive tour, the lab told us it is the first independent lab in the state that can now test for the monkeypox virus, which continues to spread in Georgia.
Inside the Ipsum lab in Sandy Springs, CEO Lauren Bricks showed us a monkeypox collection kit.
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Unlike COVID-19 kits, it contains two swabs.
“Our providers are going to swab lesions on the skin but they’re going to do two different samples,” said Bricks.
Then Ipsum will run those samples, through a multi-step process inside the lab.
The lab worked for the past few weeks, to gather additional equipment and supplies needed for monkeypox testing.
“We have all the infrastructure that’s needed already,” said Bricks.
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The number of reported monkeypox cases in Georgia is rising, reaching more than 200 on Friday.
Dr. Saju Mathew with Piedmont Healthcare told us finding labs that can test the samples has been a challenge.
“It is difficult to actually test here at Piedmont. We’re doing a good job in notifying the providers that yes, you can actually scrape the skin lesion and send that to one of five laboratories that we work with. But for a lot of doctors, it’s still a challenge to get testing done,” said Mathew.
Ipsum has completed its monkeypox preparation just this week. And now it says it is ready for its first sample.
“We’re ready to respond whenever there’s a need in the community and this obviously qualifies for that,” said Bricks.
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