Covid-19 corporate testing

We do not test patients with current Covid-19 symptoms. Please visit an NHS testing centre.

A 'fit to fly certificate' is included in the price of the Covid-19 RT-PCR Swab Test and is emailed to you with the negative result. The results will be emailed to you the day following your appointment.

All appointments are booked through our website and you must ensure you take our laboratory turnaround time of one day and your testing window requirements into account before booking the test. Our team are unable to advise on specific requirements for different countries/airlines.

Our laboratory partner is ISO 15189 accredited, details of this and the UKAS accreditation are provided when you receive a negative Covid-19 RT-PCR Swab Test certificate.

The swab tests for the presence of Coronavirus itself and can detect infection even if there are no obvious symptoms (78% of cases of Covid-19 are asymptomatic) It is the most reliable indicator of current infection.

The scientific consensus is that the virus can stay in your nose and throat for 14 days but it can be shorter or longer in some people. Therefore, a negative result may also mean the virus was not in your nose and throat when the test was done, or the swab test was not correctly done.

If the nasopharyngeal swab is taken correctly you will get an accurate and reliable result. We have fully trained Health Care Practitioners to carry out tests at our clinic or your workplace under safe conditions to ensure the best sampling, resulting in more accurate tests. We have carried out over 10,000 Covid-19 PCR Swab Tests.

• Interpreting the result of a test for covid-19 depends on two things: the accuracy of the test, and the pre-test probability or estimated risk of disease before testing. Our clinic always screens our clients for symptoms prior to any antigen test.
• A positive RT-PCR test for covid-19 test has more weight than a negative test because of the test’s high specificity but moderate sensitivity
• A single negative covid-19 test should not be used as a rule-out in patients with strongly suggestive symptoms
• At The Whitehall Clinic we always share information with patients about the accuracy of our Covid-19 tests
• No test gives a 100% accurate result

Specificity for detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection: Specificity is the proportion of patients without disease who have a negative test or true negative rate 100%.

Sensitivity for detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection: Sensitivity is the proportion of patients with disease who have a positive test or the true positive rate 98%.

The swab is soft-tipped and taken from the back of the nose. It is a routine test that is performed to diagnose other infections. This test is considered to be safe, regardless of your medical history. Click here for a video on how we obtain a nasopharyngeal swab specimen. You will spend less than 10 minutes in our clinic to have your test done.

We are currently not visiting patients in their homes for swab testing.

For our larger corporate clients we can arrange workplace testing for both the swab and blood tests, in accordance with the latest infection control and PPE guidance.

We will email your results and a detailed explanation the day after your appointment. Please check your junk/spam folders before contacting us regarding your results.

All positive swab results will also receive a phone call from a member of our medical team.

As Covid-19 infection is a notifiable illness, the lab will also inform Public Health England if the result of your Covid-19 RT-PCR Swab Test is positive.

Yes, all of our results have a QR Code on the certification which is valid for the day of the test. The QR code has been on our certificates from 05.03.2021.

Following the recent worrying issue with fraudulent Covid-19 Travel Tests and to ensure the integrity of documents along with the urgent need to control the pandemic, our IT and governance team at The Whitehall Clinic working in partnership with our laboratories, have put the following checks in place. We hope this results in safe travelling for all concerned.

All our patients receive a password protected (their Date of Birth) certificate and lab results from appointments@whitehallclinic.com and a text from the following number +44033228798 informing them that their results have been emailed. Please check this as proof in the first instance. If you need further assurance please ring our 24 hour Certificate verification line on 0113 833 4900.

• All our certificates will have a QR code that is valid for the day of the test.
• We only do the RT-PCR swab test and use only accredited UKAS laboratories.
• ID verification is done at the time of the swab test using a valid UK Driving Licence / Passport.
• All of our swabs are administered by trained professionals, we do not do self swabs.
• We do not offer a click and collect / postal swab service.

If your test is confirmed as positive we will arrange a remote consultation with a member of our medical team. Our team have been working on the frontline since the beginning of the pandemic and are all GMC registered doctors.

In the majority of cases you can self-manage your symptoms without complications, self-isolating at home and using https://111.nhs.uk/covid-19/.

Covid-19 lab-based antibody blood test

Our antibody tests are carried out in a UKAS accredited Virology laboratory. The test screens for the presence of IgG antibodies which indicates if an individual has previously had Covid-19. They can be detected normally 14 days following the infection.

Specificity for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2: Specificity is the proportion of patients without antibodies who have a negative test or true negative rate 100%.

Sensitivity for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2: Sensitivity is the proportion of patients with antibodies who have a positive test or the true positive rate 97.5%.

Covid-19 Rapid In-Clinic Antibody Test *NEW & APPROVED*

The manufacturer of our MHRA approved test states the following accuracy: based off a sample of 615 people (403 positive and 212 negative), the test is 95.12% accurate.

This is the current thinking on Immunity – Does It Exist With Covid-19?

Our take home message from recent studies on antibodies and immunity, is that a primary infection with SARS-CoV-2 provides at least 94% protection against symptomatic reinfection for at least 5 months. This suggests that natural infection provides short term protection against Covid-19 that is very similar to that conferred by vaccination.

Importantly, natural infection induces approx. 75% protection against asymptomatic reinfection, suggesting that people who have recovered from SARS-Cov-2 infection are much less likely to transmit the virus to others. This is good news in terms of the long term trends of the pandemic. However, asymptomatic reinfections are not zero, so you cannot assume that just because you have had the virus before that you can’t be infectious.

These data reinforce the message that, for the time being, everyone should consider themselves to be a potential source of infection for others and should behave accordingly. Wear a mask, avoid crowded closed poorly ventilated spaces wherever possible and wash your hands.

These reported protective ‘efficacy’ results for natural SARS-COV-2 infection are comparable to the current COVID-19 vaccines.

Having the vaccine after recovering from COVID-19 is not an issue or contraindication – and will likely boost the natural immunity. We also see this with the seasonal flu vaccine

Conclusion: The good news is that there is significant evidence that reinfections of Covid-19 is rare, at least at this stage, and that having antibodies will provide protection for a meaningful amount of time, although it may not be lifelong immunity. Get the vaccine too!

At The Whitehall Clinic we have a fair and transparent cancellation/refund policy. Appointments can be cancelled and refunded 24 hours prior to the appointment. Should you cancel within 24 hours of your appointment, then you will be entitled to a 50% refund. Please note that there is a £25 administrative fee for all cancellations.

Please note that we do not take cancellations over the phone, cancellations must be made in writing. Please email our cancellations team – hello@whitehallclinic.com stating your name, email address and appointment date and time.

We can reschedule appointments only if there is capacity available in our booking system. Please email our bookings team – appointments@whitehallclinic.com stating your name, email address and appointment date and time.

Our testing is not taking vital resources away from the NHS and is fully in line with Public Health England's (PHE) approach. The best way to overcome the coronavirus is to continue testing and surveillance hence our private programme.

The tests are approved by PHE & MHRA and are fully compliant with government guidelines. Swabs are analysed by our accredited laboratory partner. To contribute with PHE and national testing statistics, our diagnostic partner shares all Covid-19 test positive results.

We privately courier all swabs to the laboratory in a timely manner 7 days a week. We always share results as soon as possible when they have been returned from the laboratory.

There may be delays in the stated turnaround time due to laboratory issues. The Whitehall Clinic is not legally liable for any delay as a result. We do work closely with our laboratory partner to minimise delays, and always liaise with our patients on these occasions.

The Whitehall Clinic can not be held responsible for any errors when booking your appointment that lead to a delay in processing your results and documentation. We ask when booking online to please take care to ensure your correct bio-data, contact details and appointment time/date are entered.

Please note that your swab can be taken by any member of our team, all of whom are fully trained and experienced in nasopharyngeal swab testing. This ensures that there are minimal delays in appointment times and to ensure that our patients are not kept waiting.

By completing a booking you accept all the above and our refund and cancellation policy.

As a clinic we always take our staff and clients safety seriously. All our sample takers are fully trained and adhere to strict Personal Protective Equipment and Infection Control Guidance. We strive that your clinic appointment will be on time in order to minimize your time in the clinic.