Saint Lucia is equipped with a new rapid PCR testing platform capable of detecting multiple infectious diseases in under two hours, boosting the island’s ability to identify outbreaks faster and respond to potential public health threats.
The announcement came from the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), which said the island is among 10 member states where new Molbio rapid testing platforms have been successfully installed under the Pandemic Fund Project.
Installations were completed as of March 26 in Barbados, The Bahamas, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Turks and Caicos Islands, and Trinidad and Tobago. The next phase is routine testing across all the countries, with data to be shared weekly with CARPHA through the Molbio reporting system.
CARPHA said this will support the timely integration of data into regional surveillance systems, ongoing monitoring of the testing platforms and faster responses to emerging public health threats.
According to CARPHA, the technology strengthens the region’s ability to rapidly test for several pathogens of major public health concern, including SARS-CoV-2, influenza, cholera, malaria, HIV, hepatitis, tuberculosis, salmonella, leptospirosis and rabies.
The systems can also test for pathogens with pandemic potential, including Nipah virus and norovirus.
CARPHA said the introduction of the platforms reduces testing turnaround times from days to fewer than two hours, allowing for earlier diagnosis, faster isolation of cases and improved disease containment.
“The successful completion of the Molbio installations across our Member States represents a transformative step in advancing regional laboratory capacity,” said CARPHA Executive Director Dr Lisa Indar.
“By combining cutting-edge diagnostic technology with targeted workforce training, CARPHA is ensuring that countries are better prepared to detect, respond to and manage public health threats in real time.”
Alongside the rollout, CARPHA said more than 50 laboratory professionals across participating countries have been trained to operate the systems, strengthening technical capacity within national laboratory networks.
The agency said the upgraded systems are expected to improve outbreak detection and response, strengthen regional surveillance and enhance the resilience of national health systems.
CARPHA also pointed to the value of rapid deployment during Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica in October 2025, when the platform was installed and staff trained within days to support emergency testing and response readiness.
