The Municipality of Kittilä and the Infection Control Unit of Lapland Hospital District asked Agnico Eagle Finland to participate in a cross-sectional COVID-19 study, which will analyze the distribution of infections and detect possible transmission chains in Lapland.

“According to the strategy of the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), testing should be performed with a low threshold, including also random sampling of people with no symptoms, for obtaining a better understanding of the overall situation. This would help the entire province fight the epidemic,” says Markku Broas, Chief Physician at Lapland Hospital District’s Infection Control Unit.

Terveystalo, the occupational health care service provider of Agnico Eagle Finland, will perform the tests, with Agnico Eagle Finland paying the cost, and testing will be available for all Agnico Eagle Finland employees who wish to take part.

“The analysis will provide the Kittilä municipality with better understanding of the epidemic situation and give us an idea of the number of disease-carriers with no symptoms,” says Heidi Tanninen, the municipality’s chief physician.

“We want to do our part in resolving this extremely exceptional situation. Most of our employees come from Kittilä and the nearby municipalities, and we believe the testing will provide a clear overview of the current situation in the province,” says Agnico Eagle Finland’s Managing Director Jani Lösönen.