No longer testing for CV.

On the subject of cost of testing, why can other countries afford it and not us? Surely if we have a cough and high temperature we should be tested simply so the decision makers have something to base their decisions on? It seems that runny noses don't count so no need to test if that is the symptom. I read that a new, cheaper and quicker testing kit came out a couple of days ago.

The PM told us not to call 111 if we have symptoms but to do it online which is fine for all of us on here but not everyone uses the Internet. I read that if you do go to online 111 it only asks 3 questions and if you haven't come from an infected country or been in contact with a known source you are told you are low risk. That seems rather out of date to me.

Agreed, it's become impossible to test everyone with symptoms.

Whether you've had CV or not, you can still pass on the virus when you've recovered. You don't have to be infectious yourself to pick it up on your hands and pass it on. SO if you think you've had the disease and recovered you still have to observe strict hygiene measures for the sake of others. I don't think the government have stressed this enough. It won't be all over until it's over. Goodness knows when that will be.

Farawaynanny
Well said.

Why do people think they know better than the experts? This wasn’t some random decision. What is the point of testing? There’s no cure, it’s a waste of time and resources. If you have the widely publicised symptoms you should self isolate which means stay indoors so that you are not a danger to those more vulnerable. For the vast majority it is a mild self limiting illness. You do not remain a risk to others for ever more!!

I watched part of a program on channel 4 last night and there was talk of a diy test now being available, but I can't find any info on it. It would help people in the nursing/caring sector as at the moment they should be staying at home with sore throats, coughs etc. At least if they could self test they would know if they were safe to resume working.
Has anyone heard about these?

Blinko Yes, I watched that programme on Channel 4. when it finished, I cried because it was bleak, then pulled myself together and got on with it. I am pretty much self-isolating due to age and 8 different illnesses, including asthma, which make me high risk.

I think the UK's Medical Officers' response has been better than that of the WHO, quite frankly.

I still maintain the government’s response is correct.

We would be talking about hundreds of thousands of people if everyone displaying symptoms expected to be tested most of whom probably wouldn’t have the virus.

There must be far more people with colds or flu at the moment and there just aren’t the staff or resources to test everyone.

Then you need to factor in the hypochondriacs and the‘worried well’ and we are talking about a huge number of people

It just wouldn’t be possible.

My 12 yr old grandson has had what my daughter described as "a fluey thing". No cough. She could not get him tested. She didn't know whether she and her teenage daughter were supposed to quarantine themselves or not, so in the end grandson stayed off school, but my daughter and granddaughter carried on as usual. He recovered in 5 days and is off playing in a football match today.

Could they have been spreading it? Who knows? This is the problem when there is no testing.

Surely they're ceasing indiscriminate testing because whether we're tested or not won't make any difference to the numbers affected which will probably be high.

I do wonder if, in addition to the balancing act referred to, HMG is trying to obscure quite how ill-prepared we are in the UK, and how unlikely to be able to cope longer term.

Did anyone watch the programme on Ch4 last evening on this topic, Coronavirus - have we got it right?

Worrying, I'd say.

If there are no tests how do we know how many cases we have and what the survival rate is? How do we know when peak infection has been reached? Without testing surely planning becomes difficult. No wonder WHO has criticised the UK.

I do not envy our decision makers. The first role of government is to protect the population.and this means keeping the infrastructure running as well as trying to limit the spread of the virus. For example, if schools are closed down, people complain that parents then need to take time off work to care for their children. This in turn affects production, services etc. Grandparents are likely to be in the ‘at risk’ group so would be discouraged from taking over the child care,

If they are not closed down then the government is accused if not taking precautions to limit the spread of the virus.

The government is walking a tightrope trying to strike a balance to achieve the best outcome.

If there is a chance you have it self isolate, don't go on a flight or to Aldi and spread it to vulnerable people who might die, don't panic but use common sense, don't be selfish though

The World Health Organisation has just slammed the UK for stopping testing! Every country should find and test every possible case. They should be isolated, tested and treated to limit the spread of the disease. I'm glad they agree with me!

On another forum a father has been advised to stay away from his daughter as she has suspected CV. She's 4! He has chosen to ignore the advice. I think that by not testing they will be able to reduce the numbers. If you never get confirmation you won't know whether you have immunity. If you do actually get immunity that is

Now that the virus has a hold, there is little point wasting resources testing. It is said that many people have no symptoms anyway so, unless every single person were tested, the results would not be completely valid. The symptoms of Coronavirus are readily available and it is easy to compare with symptoms of flu and a common cold. If not sure, why take the chance of infecting other people by not self isolating?

Exactly, everyone. I think we've stopped testing here in NI too. I know testing costs, but surely not testing costs more.
Hopefully we'll get some clarification.

Chestnut
I’m with you 100%. We need to be able to be tested if we have symptoms. We could self isolate for two weeks, and all we’d had was a cold. We need to know.

I will repeat that people need to know whether they've got corona virus. If they don't know then how can they inform others that they may be infected? The advice is to self isolate if you've been in contact with someone who's infected but you won't know who is or who has been infected! It's all totally bonkers.

Now if the twin with a cough could be tested, and if it’s not Coronavirus they wouldn’t have to make life so difficult for themselves. Tests should be available for anyone with symptoms in my opinion.

anne
I totally agree with your post at 20.42. Today my daughter has decided to self isolate one of her twins, and so she must stay at home as she doesn’t want us to have him. We’re in our 60s and have high blood pressure and I have asthma. The trouble is she’s a GP and so is her husband. She may be able to work from home taking telephone consultations, as may her husband who is also a GP. Difficult though with a toddler and a six year old under their feet. And then if the other twin starts to show symptoms???

If they don't test anyone except people who are hospitalised then the figures for how many have the virus are invalid. I have a cold, DD has a cold and 3yo DGD and 22 month old DGS have a cold. So how do you self isolate a mummy, granny and toddler? Does the toddler look after themselves for 7 days? Does the mummy isolate herself from the toddler for 7 days - who then looks after the toddler? The granny who also has to self isolate for 7 days? This is not very practical and what if they only have a common cold? DD work - why are you off sick with a cold? Why can't granny look after toddler as usual? Who can prove anything? DD waste of a SD great I need to be off non existent work for 7 days and no one can prove anything!

But I watched a news item on Tuesday which showed in some detail the different kinds of testing station. As far as I remember they concentrated on N Ireland where there was both a room you entered with a nurse in complete protective outfit who took swabs and possibly blood.

Then they showed a drive in testing station. The reporter drove up and while still sitting in his car, a medical assistant came out and took samples from his nose, mouth and throat. The piece then were on to talk about the time it took to get results, 5 hours in N Ireland, up to 10 days elsewhere.

This is like smoke and mirrors. So has this been abandoned now? Do this government know what they're doing?

We mustn’t forget that the common cold and flu are also doing the rounds so it wouldn’t be possible to test everyone experiencing symptoms such as a cough and raised temperature.

I am sure the idea is for people to rely on their own common sense and judgement as to whether they are seriously ill enough to require medical intervention.

It has been stressed often enough that for the vast majority of people it is a mild short lived illness which also doesn’t require massive accumulations of toilet rolls!!