Children who don’t consent to a lateral flow test should be treated as positive and sent home

[user1471505494]

Schools now have much higher numbers attending than in the first lockdown. The lateral flow test was brought into schools to try and keep Staff and pupils as safe as possible.

If a parent or child refuses consent is absolutely their RIGHT to do so and I appreciate that there are many varied reasons for this. It should therefore be the RESPONSIBILITY of the schools to safeguard others and send the child home to self isolate.

I have no problem with my DC being tested because of the test and also no problem them being made to isolate if a false positive happens as I WFH at the moment as does DH.

I do have a problem with my child being a close contact and not being sent home. Instead being made to do daily tests, all the while being in contact with another 'close contact' of the first child and catching it that way. I think this would be a ridiculous thing to happen and will cause more transmission not less.

If it was just to catch the asymptomatic children and then isolating them and their close contacts as well as isolating the close contacts of those with symptoms this would be far better. X

children who are contacts who decline the new daily tests will isolate 10 days

i disagree with forcing tests with no reason tho

@Sockwomble

"No, lateral testing is still throat and nose."

Ds was tested last week. It was nose only.

I test every time I go into work. It's uo the nose and back of your throat.

@Sockwomble

"No, lateral testing is still throat and nose."

Ds was tested last week. It was nose only.

Well, they were wrong. The 'how to' guide clearly states throat then nose.

The staff would have no chance of getting a swab from most of pupils throats.

Lateral flow testing kits from my work (NHS) state to swab the nose only

I’m not giving consent for my children to be tested, and I won’t be tested either (I’m a teacher). It’s not mandatory.

@Harmarsuperstar

Lateral flow testing kits from my work (NHS) state to swab the nose only

I think they're using different ones in education.

2 of my 3 dc have Sen. One of the Sen dc and the eldest will consent to being tested and has done several, both for the COVID app and because of symptoms. The other, we stand no chance of having them tested. She has watched us all be tested several times and refused. I had ordered her a test, one of the times we did it and it caused an almighty meltdown just thinking about it. I am happy for the rest of us to go and be tested weekly, even daily to protect her school place, on the basis that if we have it, she probably does, if we don’t have it, she is probably fine. But that is probably the best I can do.

She already misses out on so many things because of her disabilities. Should she have to miss out on an education too?

Ah right I see thanks Lougle

It's really interesting, though. Care homes are provided with Innova SARS-CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Qualitative Test Kits. They clearly state nose and throat

NHS use the Innova SARS CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Qualitative Test, but their guidance says nose only

This parliament article says Innova are being used for education.

The actual <a class="break-all" href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=cdn.website-editor.net/6f54caea7c6f4adfba8399428f3c0b0c/files/uploaded/Innova-SARS-Cov-2-Antigen-test-IFU.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwjjr7nG_4_uAhVUtHEKHUU7C3Y4ChAWMAB6BAgCEAE&usg=AOvVaw1vd2QlicpyWQdG-2QWiJrW" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">information sheet in the Innova test kits says throat or nose.

So why are they using it differently in schools to everywhere else?

I would hazard a guess that nose is less invasive than throat?

I'm NHS and have been using the Innova LF test twice a week since November.
Nose only.

More specifically I'm using the Innova SARS CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Qualitative Test - nose only

Some disabled children can do the LF test especially if they do them themselves. Putting stick up your own nose is not as scary for some as having an adult do it to them. If doing it themselves with an adult encouraging them to keep moving stick up a bit further until at top of their nose. The throat ones make everyone gag.

Another nurse here.Twice weekly swabs nose only.
All children having an operation need PCR throat and nose swab.This is because of the risk of serious complications if someone Covid positive is operated on.
Sedation is sometimes needed.

@Mumofsend

I would hazard a guess that nose is less invasive than throat?

I would rather have a throat swob. Nose you can’t see what your doing and chances are people are not doing the nose one correctly!

I understand that NHS staff are using nose only, but I assumed, wrongly, that if school and care home have to do nose and throat, it would be a different test.

What I don't understand, is why the same test is being given to different groups, from the same government, with different instructions.

If you think your going to die of covid - stay at home and keep your kids at home - teachers included.

The rest of us - crack on

@Lougle

It's really interesting, though. Care homes are provided with Innova SARS-CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Qualitative Test Kits. They clearly state nose and throat

NHS use the Innova SARS CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Qualitative Test, but their guidance says nose only

This parliament article says Innova are being used for education.

The actual <a class="break-all" href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=cdn.website-editor.net/6f54caea7c6f4adfba8399428f3c0b0c/files/uploaded/Innova-SARS-Cov-2-Antigen-test-IFU.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwjjr7nG_4_uAhVUtHEKHUU7C3Y4ChAWMAB6BAgCEAE&usg=AOvVaw1vd2QlicpyWQdG-2QWiJrW" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">information sheet in the Innova test kits says throat or nose.

So why are they using it differently in schools to everywhere else?

Good question. Because they expect a HCP to be able to do nose only accurately but as schoolchildren will be self-testing they want double the chance of getting a result?

This is the NHS produced info we’ve had via school.

@Sockwomble

"No, lateral testing is still throat and nose."

Ds was tested last week. It was nose only.

I've had my form through for work and it's nose and throat for us.

Throat and one nostril and 2 nostrils if throat cannot be tolerated.

The green guide says that if a nose and throat swab can't be achieved then a nose swab alone is acceptable. The SEN guidance says the same plus also that if a child can only do a throat swab but find the nose swab distressing they can just have a throat swab. It can be any of those three options (the third, clinical, webinar explained this) but the guidance is a bit disjointed and imo needs to be more consistent.

@Schmoozer schools and parents have been given the picture information sheet! It’s 2cm up the nose and 4 strokes on each side of the back of the throat!

@Pandemicpanic

It's absolutely right that children and teens can refuse this test and I'm not giving consent for an untrained medic to do younger dd.

However, it's also absolutely right that staff in school are not put at risk of covid and other pupils. What the answer is?.. I don't know.

The answer is you get treated as before and isolate for 10 days if you can’t do the test. My middle child will never allow anyone to do the test. So he would have to isolate for 10 days. Children are very often asymptomatic so there is a risk that he could pass it on to others if he had it.

Surely children with sensory issues would have to tolerate having a test if they were going to access any hospital treatment?

not sure how it is done then. but we had simple dental work done for DD (severe ASD) under a GE as she won't cooperate at all and it needed to be sorted. Some children cannot tolerate the most standard of things...