Breadcrumbs

Health testing

ESR experts work with bacteria and viruses that cause human disease, referred to as pathogenic. The mode of transmission of these pathogenic microbes can be from person-to-person, through contact with animals or, within health care facilities.

As New Zealand’s national reference laboratory, we build on the diagnostic and reference testing performed in hospital and community laboratories by confirming the diagnosis of communicable diseases (e.g. whooping cough, listeriosis, meningitis, salmonellosis, influenza and many others) and taking the diagnosis a step further by characterising the bacteria or virus using molecular tools (molecular biology), phenotypic characteristics of the micro-organisms or serological techniques.

Other testing, such as influenza surveillance, is done directly by screening specimens collected from patients, without referral from community laboratories.

Search our database for a specialist test or complete a referral form to submit a sample.

Laboratory