This archive report was first published on 17 July 2020.
On July 17, 2020, Ahmed Kalebi, CEO and founder of Lancet, a leading medical testing lab in Kenya, addressed concerns over conflicting COVID-19 results.
According to Kalebi, some individuals are in denial of their coronavirus status, leading to confusion and discordant results. He emphasized the importance of understanding the science behind COVID-19 testing.
“Some people don’t understand the science of the testing. When people test positive, I think there is an element of denial from people looking for negative results and they don’t want to accept the results,” he said.
Responding to Health CS Mutahi Kagwe’s comment that Lancet will be probed, Kalebi stated that the lab had already been audited by the Ministry of Health and the Medical Council. He also highlighted the lab’s superior testing capabilities, using top-notch kits compared to others in the country.
“The concerns should actually be about false negative results, rather than false positive results,” he said.
During an interview with Citizen TV, Kalebi also explained that the viral shedding period is five days, and someone could test negative at one lab and then positive at another lab days later when the virus has already shed.
