Report: Implementing rapid diagnostic tests for UTIs in the UK healthcare system

Following the announcement of Sysmex Astrego’s PA-100 system being awarded the £8m Longitude Prize on AMR, Challenge Works has published a new report on the implementation of rapid diagnostic tests for UTIs in the NHS.

The report explores how the introduction of such tests could play a role in improving diagnosis and treatment of the common condition (affecting 50-60% of women) and limiting the spread of antimicrobial resistance as a direct result of inaccurate antibiotic prescription.

The recommendations published are based on interviews with expert clinicians, academics, and patients, in order to identify challenges and solutions as to how groundbreaking tests, such as the PA-100, could be realistically integrated into the NHS.

The report identifies potential pathways for the introduction of the new technology in the NHS, aligning with the ambitions of the UK Government’s recently announced AMR 5 year national action plan, ‘Confronting antimicrobial resistance 2024 to 2029’. Contributors include Professor Matthew Inada-Kim, National Clinical Director for Infection and Chris Butler, Professor of Primary Care, Nuffield Department of Primary Health Care Sciences, University of Oxford and others.