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COVID-19 Testing

Overview

Testing the KAUST population for COVID-19 is an important element of the overall KAUST response to COVID-19. Testing of symptomatic individuals is the first line in identifying COVID-19 cases, and assures appropriate medical care, particularly for serious illness. Formal COVID-19 testing is primarily reserved for diagnosis of more severe cases, or when required for purposes such as travel. Rapid antigen tests approved for self-test at home can be used for a quick screening result. The program approach will be continuously updated as the COVID-19 situation evolves and technology continues to advance.

Testing At KAUST

There are three main categories of individuals in KAUST COVID-19 testing approach to consider.

Symptomatic Individuals

This category refers to anyone in KAUST who has symptoms: employees, dependents, visitors, and service providers. KAUST Health will test symptomatic people following a decision tree outlined by the MOH that is designed to screen out less severe cases. Self-tests can be used for quick decisions at home.How testing is done:
  • Tests administered for this purpose have been run since the beginning of the pandemic, using the MOH RT-PCR assay and more recently, rapid antigen tests. Individuals who test positive are put in home isolation (or hospitalized, depending on the symptoms severity), and contact tracing is performed. Rapid antigen tests approved for self-test can be used for a quick screening result.

Asymptomatic Individuals

With the primary focus on common public health measures (vaccination, respiratory etiquette, staying home when sick, etc.) to reduce the spread, testing of asymptomatic individuals is not recommended.

International Travelers

Individuals traveling out of KAUST to international destinations and requiring recent test result for travel belong to this group. With the advance of the worldwide vaccination programs, testing requirements for travel might change.

How testing is done:
  • The current procedure is the RT-PCR or antigen test, as required for some outgoing international travel.