TORONTO – The Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) has announced a new COVID-19 PCR and antigen testing research program at Toronto Pearson.
The program, which starts on March 1, is supported in part by funding from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP).
It is designed to explore the efficacy of antigen testing, compared with the rapid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, in a high-throughput, commercial environment, as well as the operationalization of rapid PCR testing in an airport environment.
Throughout Toronto Pearson’s Healthy Airport transformation, the GTAA has remained committed to a science and data-driven approach, guided by experts in healthcare, diagnostic testing, public health, and industry. This initiative further deepens the GTAA’s focus on contributing to local and national economic recovery, while protecting the community. The findings of this study may have application in other settings, including schools and workplaces.
“The GTAA continues to demonstrate its commitment and leadership in the exploration of the science of COVID-19 testing. Science is at the heart of our Healthy Airport commitment and we are pleased to receive this support from NRC IRAP on this additional testing program, as we pursue further innovation here at Toronto Pearson,” said Deborah Flint, President and CEO, GTAA. “This research will contribute substantial new scientific data to the body of knowledge used to fight this disease by improving access to testing that will identify, trace and isolate COVID-19.”
The GTAA looks forward to working with Fionet Rapid Response Group (FRR), a joint venture between Fio Corporation and Relay Medical Corp, who will deploy its digital workflow, testing, and data infrastructure for execution and oversight of this program.
“We’re privileged to partner with the GTAA to fight back against a pandemic that has devastated lives and economies,” said Dr. Michael Greenberg, CEO of Fionet Rapid Response Group Inc and of Fio Corporation. “FRR and our collaborators, MedeVaq and OnPoint1 Health, are eager to execute this impactful mission made possible by the Government of Canada.”
Today’s announcement heralds the creation of new point-of-need testing capacity at the airport. The GTAA will work with a team of Canadian healthcare companies to run a ten-week antigen test study at Toronto Pearson. The study will make free COVID-19 tests available to employees, as well as testing for eligible passengers on select routes who are willing to volunteer as participants. The study will begin accepting volunteers on March 1. Clinical analysis of test swabs will take place on-site at the airport, using LuminUltra’s rapid PCR test, with results provided to the participant within two hours. Participants will also be tested using Response Biomedical rapid antigen tests. Integration of these testing technologies, passenger processes, and all data flows will be managed by the Fionet Platform.
For airport workers, many of whom live in communities adjacent to the airport, taking part in this research will help to identify, trace and isolate COVID-19 at work and at home in the communities that surround the airport. Airport worker testing is the latest development in the GTAA’s ongoing commitment to being proactive and transparent in protecting the airports’ workforce. Toronto Pearson was the first Canadian airport to receive Airports Council International’s global health accreditation for its Healthy Airport program and was one of the first major airports globally to publish an airport-wide COVID-19 employee case log.
“The GTAA is one of the City of Mississauga’s strongest partners and this study demonstrates its strong commitment to protecting the thousands of Mississauga residents who work at Pearson, as well as their families,” said Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie. “What makes this study particularly important is that its findings could be applicable to other work settings, not only in Mississauga but across Ontario and the entire country. This is yet another example of the GTAA being on the cutting edge of innovation and community safety. I want to thank the GTAA, as well as the Government of Canada, for launching this timely study at Pearson and the Government of Ontario for providing rapid tests.”
