The testing is a bit of a double edged sword for me in my work situation at the moment.
I can now refer any staff who are symptomatic for tests (at a centre 40 mins drive away). Lots of staff have misunderstood this and think they should all be tested, symptomatic or not. It's hard work trying to explain ad finitum that if they aren't symptomatic they shouldn't be getting a test.
One regular bank worker who also works elsewhere was sent for a test by her other employer on the basis that she had been poorly (she had been off for 14 days) although had declared herself fit for work-and seemed it, and had been back a week at this point.
She went for the test (which she had to do on herself whilst sitting in her car-which seems not very fool proof to me), and three days later got the result 'inconclusive'. Que huge panic in rest of staff team..lots of people cancelling shifts and we are back to square one....
She has been back in work a week so even if she does have it, it's too late in terms of transmission that may or may not have occurred.
Highlights a few things
- Testing system not fit for purpose still. I'm hearing lots of tests come back as inconclusive, probably as not self administered correctly. It shouldn't be hard but lots of people aren't well versed in how to do even simple medical stuff like this-throw in a 40 min drive when you feel poorly, and a weird, stressful experience at the test centre when you feel unwell already-mistakes will be made.
- Advice is not being followed on who should be eligible for a test and there is no way of policing that. Non symptomatic people going for tests is a waste of resource-the test won't show if you have had it in the past.
- We should have been doing this and contact tracing from the beginning-then we'd have known who had it, who didn't, how to deal with those that have been in proximity to a positive person etc. Now we are left with back dated panic.
- Still no way of getting service users tested. Not been offered and even if it were I can't get them to a test centre 40 mins away
I don't understand why community nursing teams can't be given test kits and sent to care homes to swab everyone in one go, and do so more reliably than people doing it themselves.
Yes they are stretched. We all are. But they are still coming out to do other things-dress pressure sores etc... or why not redirect NHS staff that are working in areas that are now quieter due to Covid fear to care homes to conduct tests. It would be a morning's work in most homes-less in smaller ones.
I'm just so sick of this whole situation. The lack of clarity, the u turns on testing, the lies on the figures, the scrabbling for PPE, and on a smaller scale, trying to keep my staff on a level when they are losing their minds every ten minutes or whenever they watch the news!