Military to support mass school testing

[lonelyplanet]

From the BBC this morning- The Ministry of Defence said 1,500 military personnel will hold webinars and give phone support to school staff.

There are about 3500 secondary schools in England. Here's what I think will happen. Staff will get invited to a 30 minute zoom webinar to explain how to carry out the testing of the ineffective lateral flow tests. There won't be enough tests, staff or facilities for labeling and processing for everyone so schools will be advised to target only close contacts of positive cases.

Two weeks later the school phones the army helpline.

School Testing Admin Officer: Hi Covidire Academy here; we have a question. No one has tested positive with our school tests - are we doing it right?
Army Helpline: That's great news, you are clearly doing it right.
STAO: Lots of the children are complaining of headaches and rashes. Do we send them home?
AH: No need if they've got a negative result
STAO: Mrs Higgins is a TA and luckily a trained nurse. She is overseeing the students swabbing themselves. She says they don't like the feel of the swab so the children are only sticking it slightly up their nostrils. Is this okay?
AH: I'm sure that will be just as effective
STAO: Mrs Higgins has had a mild cough for a few days but has had 2 negative tests, can she continue? We are short staffed and need her.
AH: Yes if she continues to test negative
STAO: She is also a 1 to 1 TA for a child with severe diabetes is this okay?
AH: Yes if she continues to test negative
STAO: A child in Year 9 has had an asthma attack and admitted to hospital. He has since tested positive despite 5 negative tests last week. He hasn't been in for 3 days. Lots of his class have been off sick but no other positives from our testing.
AH: Your testing regime is clearly working well at preventing infection. Keep up the good work.

And that's just secondary schools. Primaries - no measures.

They've been perfectly able to make their own decisions on which children are isolating, they're the only people who have done it.

Oh. I take it schools are too dangerous for the army to actually go into, then?

@GCAcademic

Oh. I take it schools are too dangerous for the army to actually go into, then?

Yes, of course, you're absolutely right, no one would dream of sending a soldier anywhere dangerous. Get a grip and some respect.

That went right over your head, didn't it? Never mind.

If this were happening in the US we'd all be laughing at another of Trumps mad ideas to do some fake window dressing around the virus that even a halfwit could see through.

Not so funny when Boris thinks he can get away with this shit over here.

I predict that this testing nonsense will be abandoned as a non-starter (even with help from the military) and as soon as a suitable vaccine (easily transportable and storable) is available a mass vaccination programme will be rolled out for over 16s in schools and colleges. It’s far easier to vaccinate than test. It will be sold as saving exams but in fact will generate lots of very useful data in a high infection environment .

@BiggerTallerFaster

They've been perfectly able to make their own decisions on which children are isolating, they're the only people who have done it.

But now they're being told not to do this, and instead have those pupils will be directed to test themselves daily, with a test that is under 60% reliable.

That's going to make schools so much safer, when those who would otherwise have been SI are instead present in them

And now I’m waiting for the announcement
www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-55280671

"But now they're being told not to do this, and instead have those pupils will be directed to test themselves daily, with a test that is under 60% reliable.

That's going to make schools so much safer, when those who would otherwise have been SI are instead present in them"

3% reliable- I'll attach this article again in case anyone missed it:
www.newscientist.com/article/2263746-test-caught-just-3-per-cent-of-students-with-covid-19-at-uk-university/

[quote bornatXmastobequiet]And now I’m waiting for the announcement
www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-55280671[/quote]
This news is great but won't help schools this term. I'm an over 50 teacher but won't be vaccinated until at least May and that's if everything goes perfectly to plan - which going on the government's track record doesn't look too hopeful.

@GCAcademic

Oh. I take it schools are too dangerous for the army to actually go into, then?

Would you try and control year 9 with pointy things?

😂

I was being sarcastic about the vaccinations...

Because I posted before I got the news about teachers over 50 being bumped up...