By: Linggar Binangkit ) *
Experts from UGM found a new tool to detect the covid-19 virus, which is named GeNose . If it is mass produced, it will be easier to identify corona patients , because the method is painless. Apart from that, the costs are also much cheaper. When more corona patients are detected, they can be treated quickly and the pandemic will end soon.
We have been experiencing the Covid-19 pandemic for almost 10 months. We keep trying so that no one is infected anymore, so that this sad time will quickly end. So far, to test whether someone is infected with the corona virus , the method is a rapid test or a swab . Because many people have the status of people without symptoms and it will only be discovered if they are diagnosed with one of them.
Apart from the rapid and swab tests , currently there are other alternatives, namely the GeNose test . This latest corona detection tool is the result of research from a team of experts at Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta. Professor Kuwat Triyana, Head of the GeNose Development Team, stated that this tool already has a distribution permit from the Ministry of Health, so it is ready for mass production.
Professor Kuwat added, GeNose can help deal with corona through rapid screening . The reason is because the covid-19 test can be done in just 3 minutes. This tool can be used for 6 hours, and test it with just a breath. So that the process is painless. In that sense, the method is more subtle, different from the swab test that inserts a device into the nose.
After the official distribution permit is granted, the next step is to mass produce it. The target of the GeNose development team is to make up to 10,000 devices, until February 2021. So that more people will be detected, whether they are exposed to corona or not. If 1 device can test up to 120 people a day, then those who are positive for Covid will be immediately taken to the hospital.
In order to mass produce GeNose , a consortium consisting of 5 companies on a national scale was created. They collaborated in making a lot of the lats for this latest corona test , so that it doesn’t just become a prototype . After this tool is finished, people are not afraid of the cost, because one test only takes 15,000 to 25,000 rupiah. Very affordable and helps those who are in trouble due to pan- sake.
This nominal is much cheaper than the rapid or swab test . The rapid test costs around 250,000-350,000 rupiah, while the swab test costs 800,000-1,000,000 rupiah. So that testing many people with GeNose will lower the regional government budget and make it easier to handle corona . Because the test results will come out in just a few minutes.
Compare this with a swab test that results at least 2 days later. Testing with GeNose which results come out quickly, is also guaranteed to be accurate. So that it is planned that testing corona in public places such as stations, airports, markets, and other locations will be easier and more practical. People will want to get tested because they don’t have to stick their noses in.
The discovery of GeNose is a new breakthrough in handling corona . Because besides the results are accurate, come out quickly, the method doesn’t hurt. That way, people do not have to be afraid when they are going to the test, and even force themselves to falsify the rapid results or swabs . Because there are several cases of fake test results, or it turns out that they wear the suits of brokers.
When testing the corona with the GeNose tool is made easier and cheaper, the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic will improve. Because this tool gives results that come out quickly. So that when someone is detected positive for corona , they will be rushed to the hospital or told to isolate themselves. Many people have recovered from the covid-19 virus and there is no more transmission, so the pandemic ends quickly.
) * The author is a citizen living in Surabaya