Pooling is a method of testing where lower nasal swab specimens from multiple people are mixed together and tested with a single molecular test. This gives organizations and communities population-level data to make informed public health decisions at a fraction of the cost of individual testing plans.
This is an observed self-collected anterior nasal (AN) swab. Unlike a nasopharyngeal (NP) swab, which reaches deep into the nose to take a sample from the back of the throat, an AN sample is taken from the lower part of the front of the nose, about half an inch inside the nostril. This method both increases comfort and requires less PPE than NP swabs.