Armadale blazes a trail with new flu test
Winter Commander for East Metropolitan Health Service (EMHS) Alisha Thompson said nurses could now swab patients at triage in the emergency waiting room and results were known by the time the patient was admitted for treatment.
In a first for Australia, Armadale Health Service has trialled a revolutionary new test kit, which quickly identifies the type of virus or bacteria for each Emergency Department (ED) patient.
Used by emergency staff in Armadale since winter 2025, it can detect up to 15 viral and bacterial pathogens within approximately
15 minutes.
The SpotFire rapid testing platform, now rolled out to other WA Health locations, replaces the standard respiratory test which takes up to six hours in the laboratory.
Winter Commander for East Metropolitan Health Service (EMHS) Alisha Thompson said nurses could now swab patients at triage in the emergency waiting room and results were known by the time the patient was admitted for treatment.
“We can get advanced, rapid molecular testing done in ED and not in the lab,” she said.
Armadale was the first in the State – and Australia – to trial the test kit in the ED, Alisha added.
“We started last winter during flu season but it has now been fully commissioned and integrated, with the help of PathWest," she said.
“What this means, particularly for parents of young children, is that we can give them reassurance about their diagnosis.”