Inside Virginia's state lab

RICHMOND, Va. - Testing flu samples takes a steady hand and during this season, long hours. As scientists prepare for an onslaught, WAVY.com went inside the state laboratory in Richmond to see scientists perform those tests.

The scientists aren't worried about finding the H1N1 virus, instead they're job is to stay a step ahead of it.

The Richmond lab is a surveying site, meaning they get samples from around the state. Local health departments, some doctors offices and hospitals agree to send a certain number of flu samples to the state lab.

Lab Director Dr. Jim Pearson says those samples are tested to determine what's circulating in the community. "Knowing what virus is circulating is important to knowing which antiviral drugs should be used on a patient, if any," said Dr. Pearson.

Testing every person with symptoms would cost too much, said Sean Kelly of the lab's Molecular Group. "If things get much worse this fall and we've used all our resources to test everyone, we're not going to be able to respond if the virus changes, if it starts killing a much higher percentage of people," said Kelly.

He says they have prepared with the help from a federal grant. "This money has been provided to give additional training staff and supplies so that we can meet the testing needs that we need as the season goes on," he said.

The labs' staff has increased by about 10, and 10 others have been trained to do the tests. The state lab has received 1,000 flu samples since April first - that's 15 times more then usual for this time of year.

The typical flu season starts October 1 and runs through March.

CLICK HERE FOR OUR WAVY.COM FLU EMERGENCY KIT