Corona – lack of testing: – very worried

Recently, there has been a significant shortage of rapid tests in the UK. At the same time, the infection pressure is high, and yesterday the Britons got another new record for infection: 183,037 infected people were recorded within one day, according to the Reuters.

according to does not depend on Professor Martin Marshall, president of the British Medical Association, Royal College of General Practitioners, says COVID-19 is creating major problems.

The Covid virus continues to spread like wildfire in dry grass and has serious consequences for health services in general. What we are seeing is more and more patients that we meet in general practice, who are experiencing symptoms of corona.

At the same time, prominent researchers say the persistent shortage of corona tests is a “major concern” ahead of the New Year celebrations, he writes Sky News.

Worried about celebrating the new year

Professor Ravi Gupta, a clinical microbiologist at the University of Cambridge, describes the deficiency as “a major concern”.

– Because of course we already have many cases where the probability of an individual being infected in a social setting on New Year’s Eve, is very high, even if the person tested negative in the past 24 hours.

The transmission of infection will be large, and of course, the availability of rapid examinations and tests will exacerbate this problem. Personally, I am very concerned about what will happen next year, Gupta continues.

The warning came as Health Minister Sajid Javid acknowledges that there is a unique demand for both PCR and rapid tests, which is straining the testing system, Sky News writes.

The professor and member of NERVTAG, a group of experts advising the government’s chief medical adviser, Peter Openshaw, thinks the lack of testing now ahead of the New Year celebrations is deeply worrying.

In a radio interview, he said the parties are “perfect” for spreading the coronavirus.

Every five minutes

The Pharmacy Guild came out and said the lack of Christmas put “officials in an impossible position,” he reported. Watchman.

– What our members are telling us is that the demand for rapid tests is very high at the moment, due to current guidelines on self-isolation. Lily Hanbeck, president of the association, said pharmacies report that some people order rapid tests every five minutes.

In England, those who test positive can self-isolate from ten to seven days if they have negative rapid tests on the sixth and seventh days.

In a letter sent to MPs on Wednesday evening, Health Minister Sajid Javid acknowledged the severe strain on the system now that cases of the omicron variant continue to increase, he writes. Watchman.

Warnings: – Tsunami infection

-Given the huge demand for rapid tests we’ve seen over the past three weeks, we anticipate that we’ll have to constrain the system at certain points over the next two weeks to deal with supply every day, with new supplies releasing regularly throughout the day.

The government is taking action, ordering more tests. 300 million is expected in January, a significant increase from the 100 million rapid tests planned before the discovery of the omicron.