All adults (in England)* to be offered twice-weekly tests

[MiaMc]

How do we think this is going to work?

Reportedly only 20% of people with symptoms are referring themselves for formal testing. So unfortunately I can’t imagine take up of this being high unless it becomes mandatory to show evidence of the result in certain situations.

Sadly, too many people seem to take the view that if something isn’t going to benefit them directly they can’t see why they should do it.

Then there will be those people who come up with excuses as to why they should be exempt. If take up isn’t high enough and people don’t do the test correctly it’s going to seem like an expensive pointless exercise.

• [Title edited by MNHQ to make it clear this relates to England only, and that tests are being offered but are not mandatory. Original title said: All adults to test themselves twice per week]

How does this work if you haven't got internet or mobile phone, my elderly DF hasn't got either.

@EffOrf

How does this work if you haven't got internet or mobile phone, my elderly DF hasn't got either.

At the testing centres near me they will fill in all the details on iPad for you. On the home kits, you do it all yourself. My DCs have them from school. You’re supposed to log it every time, but the college said they don’t need to do a negative.

I wont be doing it.

I work in a school and we were told last year to switch off the tracking app (because of the risk of being told to isolate 'unnecessarily' ie they were worried that staff might be told to stay at home for 10 days).
When a pupil tested positive it was put to the staff as in 'if any staff has breached the H&S rules, let us know and we can determine whether you are at risk'...
But we were still expected to be in the (narrow) corridors between lesson changes while 500+ unmasked kids paraded past to their next lesson, we were still expected to stand at the door and supervise the hand sanitising so they didn't squirt it in each others faces, and we were still expected to go to a pupils desk to help them (so the 2m duct-taped box around my desk was meaningless).
So no, I wont be doing a test that's at best 50% accurate... I mean if I took a guess at whether I had Covid there's a 50% chance I'd be right!

@MiaMc

How do we think this is going to work?

Reportedly only 20% of people with symptoms are referring themselves for formal testing. So unfortunately I can’t imagine take up of this being high unless it becomes mandatory to show evidence of the result in certain situations.

Sadly, too many people seem to take the view that if something isn’t going to benefit them directly they can’t see why they should do it.

Then there will be those people who come up with excuses as to why they should be exempt. If take up isn’t high enough and people don’t do the test correctly it’s going to seem like an expensive pointless exercise.

It is an expensive, pointless exercise whether people do it or not.

The lf test are rubbish anyway-dh colleague got a positive went home to ioslate done a pcr and it was negative-waste of time

As teachers, we’ve been given 2 lateral flow tests per week. I hear they’re only 30% reliable, tho and a teacher friend was repeatedly clear, as was her husband and dc. They then took the PNCR test because they were feeling ropey, all 3 had it.

@TheLongDark

I wont be doing it. I work in a school and we were told last year to switch off the tracking app (because of the risk of being told to isolate 'unnecessarily' ie they were worried that staff might be told to stay at home for 10 days). When a pupil tested positive it was put to the staff as in 'if any staff has breached the H&S rules, let us know and we can determine whether you are at risk'... But we were still expected to be in the (narrow) corridors between lesson changes while 500+ unmasked kids paraded past to their next lesson, we were still expected to stand at the door and supervise the hand sanitising so they didn't squirt it in each others faces, and we were still expected to go to a pupils desk to help them (so the 2m duct-taped box around my desk was meaningless). So no, I wont be doing a test that's at best 50% accurate... I mean if I took a guess at whether I had Covid there's a 50% chance I'd be right!

It’s not 50% accurate

Is there not the risk that people will do a test and if negative abandon the rules as they think they are ok
I know i have had to remind my teenagers when they say I don't have it I had a test etc

Thanks Redcrayons

@islockdownoveryet Well according to the BMJ, they are 80% effective when done by trained healthcare people, dropping to 57% when done by pharmacy staff.. and these will be done by your average joe, at home with zero training at all so yeah, 50% seems pretty generous really...

Not RTFT, but I won’t be doing it simply because it isn’t necessary for me. I wfh, don’t go to supermarkets etc, won’t even be having people visiting as anyone I want to see is still too far away. Where would I even catch covid? And who would I pass it on to?

At my kids school they’ve been told that if they have a positive lateral flow test, they have to isolate for 10 days, even if the PCR test comes back negative .
I’ve decided that if they ever get a positive lateral flow test, then I won’t tell the school. I’ll keep them home and get a PCR test - if that’s positive then obviously they’ll isolate. But if the PCR is negative then I won’t tell school anything. I’ll just pretend they’ve got a stomach upset or something, while waiting for the result.

@AaronPurr

The tests are £5 each

I don't think that is the cost the government is paying. According to the BMJ figures the government is paying between 2.5p and 3p each. (looking at figures for amount they've spent on tests and number of tests) That does still mean they've spent over a billion on them as they've ordered into the hundred millions.

I can't see huge numbers of people taking the option up. They'll vary from:

1. I don't go anywhere
2. I've been vaccinated so no need
3. I don't like them
4. Oh yes, I will... tomorrow
5. Don't believe in covid.

I've got them as a parent, and the dc have them, but the registration is painful, especially when you're doing several. They really need to set it up so either you just scan in/write in the bar code, then the result and only need to enter other details if they've changed.

[quote TheLongDark]@islockdownoveryet Well according to the BMJ, they are 80% effective when done by trained healthcare people, dropping to 57% when done by pharmacy staff.. and these will be done by your average joe, at home with zero training at all so yeah, 50% seems pretty generous really...[/quote]
Sorry but that’s wrong , they are idiot proof as long as you read the instructions.
You don’t need to be trained professional to do them properly.
I’m really not arsed if you don’t want to do them but don’t spout rubbish because those figures aren’t facts .

I don't mind doing them personally (apart from the waste) but it winds me up that people are 'reassured' by a negative result when we know the sensitivity of the test is so poor. A negative result on a lateral flow does not mean that you are negative. The only thing they do is pick up a few asymptomatic cases who would have never otherwise known.

@MiaMc

It’s frustrating up that the typical irresponsible anti-lockdown Covid denier is also the kind of person not to take up this testing. Fancy denying a measure that could prevent the situation they are so opposed to...there’s no logic to it at all.

Hold on.

The only person in our household who leaves the house and mixes with people is already being tested twice a week

I wfh, I’ve had my first jab. My oh has had his, goes into his office maybe once a week, no close contact with anyone, we do online food shopping and don’t mix with anyone

Even those we come across have been jabbed already or are at least 2m away with masks

What do you think us using tests would tell us that common sense hasn’t already?

I am so sick of this ridiculous holier than thou mentality

People wittering on about how selfish or idiotic others are, or how they’re Covid deniers because of some complete load of bollocks

Just SHUT UP, mind your own business, focus on doing YOUR stuff and know that there are others who DO know what they are doing (differently to you) and why.

@islockdownoveryet
"Public Health England’s evaluation of the Innova test showed that its sensitivity was 79.2% when used by trained laboratory scientists, 73% when used by trained healthcare staff, but only 57.5% when used by track and trace centre staff employed by the pharmacy chain Boots."

BMJ.. Maybe tell them they are wrong?

Link

The last para isn’t directed at anyone specifically but all those who trot out this crap over and over again

@islockdownoveryet Of course anyone can follow the instructions correctly to administer but it is widely known that the tests are not accurate and often give false negatives.

I don't mind doing them personally (apart from the waste) but it winds me up that people are 'reassured' by a negative result when we know the sensitivity of the test is so poor. A negative result on a lateral flow does not mean that you are negative. The only thing they do is pick up a few asymptomatic cases who would have never otherwise known.

Yes.

And I think they will be doing more harm because people will be reassured by the negative test and will be likely to be mixing more and relaxing self distancing and because the tests are not very reliable this will lead to spread.

@MiaMc

Sorry, what I mean by “ignorant wanker” is someone who doesn’t take up the testing but actually needs to use public transport and be out and about.

So someone with no car, who has to work outside the home and who may be living on a knife edge with a job with no sick pay and low wage who cannot afford to continually be without work and still eat and pay rent ?

I won't be testing. I work from home and have been vaccinated.

It's all getting a bit batshit now, let's be honest.

@ConnieCaterpillar70

It's all getting a bit batshit now, let's be honest.

A year ago a lot of this was being shot down as conspiracy theory...

@JudgeRindersMinder

Why are some people so resistant to doing things which will help us move on?. I’ve been testing twice a week for a couple of months now, it takes a couple of minutes, if that, to set up and do the test, and wait 20 minutes for the resul, 30 seconds to log it. It’s not the most fun part of my week, but the past year hasn’t exactly been fun either!

Why do we need testing to move on when more than half the adult population has been vaccinated (and the more vulnerable half)? I just don't understand why this is being suggested.

And the test is unpleasant. I will do it if I want to travel overseas and it's a requirement for that, or if I have symptoms. Otherwise, the government can bog off.

My moral compass is on not wasting time, money, effort, and the planet on a hare brained scheme to test healthy people for an illness now well controlled by vaccinations, and mild for most people in any event This.

I'm not sure about this.

I am concerned about the accuracy of the tests. I think this could lead to various unwanted outcomes as mentioned above - either

1. false positives leading to unnecessary isolation. or
2. false negatives leading to an unwarranted sense of security "oh it's fine to come and visit we've all just tested negative" sort of thing.

Currently testing the offspring twice a week as school have asked, but am not convinced doing me as well is a good use of anyone's time, effort, or piles of plastic.