Background: Acute viral respiratory tract infections are among the most common infectious problems of childhood during the first five years of life, particularly among infants younger than 2 years of age. Although the majority of these infections does not require medical attention and are self-limited in nature, worried parents commonly bring their children to the emergency department (ED) for evaluation (average 2500 children/winter). EDs are choke points in the health care system, especially at the peaks of the annual influenza season and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) season. Without a prompt specific viral diagnosis in a child presenting to the ED with a febrile respiratory illness, after being seen by a physician, a child may have to undergo a constellation of precautionary diagnostic tests (septic work up, CXR) and be prescribed antibiotics unnecessarily. These interventions lead to prolonged ED stays (average 180min +/-120 min), intense use of human health resources (nursing, laboratory and radiology staff) resulting in significant cost both direct and indirect to the health care system, as well as time lost to the children and their families and contribute to antimicrobial resistance. The precise etiology of these viral infection episodes can be determined through the use of rapid screening program such as VIRAP (nasopharyngeal washing for rapid direct viral antigen detection via immunofluorescence). At the moment VIRAP is a physician ordered test, done only after the child has been seen by the physician, usually after the child has already been waiting for a significant length of time, then has to wait further for the results of the test.