Booster with a cough?

[MilkCereal]

I have a sore throat and a cough-nothing major, I work at a school so everyone has it. Lots of covid in my school and both my dc have classmates with covid. All negative on lfts. Not a continuous persistent cough.
Booster booked tomorrow. Shall I still go?

I'm tempted to cancel and get pcr for cough but I'm worried about the wait to rebook.

The NHS definition of a continuous cough is probably a lot less coughing than you think "coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours". So no, you should not go to a booster clinic potentially full of elderly or vulnerable people whilst you are coughing. You should cancel, get a PCR test and isolate until you get the results, especially knowing you've been around people with covid.

I don’t think you will be popular standing in a queue coughing. I went for my booster Friday, first question before going in was do you have any covid symptoms, if you say cough, they will ask you to come back another day.

Ok thanks, I work in a school, we dont isolate whilst awaiting pcr results we have to be in school. I'll book pcr now.

@MilkCereal

Ok thanks, I work in a school, we dont isolate whilst awaiting pcr results we have to be in school. I'll book pcr now.

You don’t isolate even if symptomatic? That’s going directly against the guidance?

My “cough” was my first symptom. It wasn’t even a cough, as such, just a feeling in my throat/chest that I might cough, so I would force myself to cough to get rid of the feeling. So it wasn’t an involuntary cough, it was a forced one. Would be about one single cough every 30 mins or so.

I think a better way to look at it is not “have you got a cough” but “have you been coughing”? If the answer to the latter is yes, and that’s new, then you need to get a PCR. Ignore the whole “continuous cough” thing, it’s horribly misleading.

You have a cough, you need to isolate and get a PCR test. It doesn’t matter if everyone else around you has tested and just have colds - you need to test.

You have covid symptoms. You isolate and get a pcr.

How how how can you not know this?

If you have Covid symptoms you absolutely should be isolating while waiting for results. Your school must be rife with it if that's their policy?!

Yes OP, don't go to a vaccination centre today.
I think you should speak to school; at my work place we don't isolate while awaiting a PCR if eg we are getting it done because a family member is positive BUT if you have symptoms ( as in your case) ) or have a positive LFT you should isolate until the PCR is back.
Something has gone wrong with your school's messaging.

@MilkCereal

Ok thanks, I work in a school, we dont isolate whilst awaiting pcr results we have to be in school. I'll book pcr now.

You do when you are symptomatic and awaiting results.

If you have been advised to test after a contact, then it's different. Your school needs to bring its policy into compliance with govt policy (education and health) and law, and needs to ensure staff understand it fully once it is compliant

@MilkCereal

Ok thanks, I work in a school, we dont isolate whilst awaiting pcr results we have to be in school. I'll book pcr now.

Really? I'm shocked. Our schools have made it very clear us and the children are not to be in school (and reiterated that last week) if waiting for a PCR result.

Whether you have to isolate as a contact waiting for a pcr depends on where in the uk you are.

Nobody should be going out waiting for a pcr result when they have symptoms. This is the same everywhere.

PurpleDaisies I hadn't realised isolation rules were different within the UK. I'm in England.

Having said that, I do agree with you people shouldn't be going out if they've had a PCR due to symptoms/contact as they're a high risk.

Having said that, I do agree with you people shouldn't be going out if they've had a PCR due to symptoms/contact as they're a high risk.

Nobody should be going out with symptoms until they’ve got a negative test. Nobody.

That needs to be absolutely crystal clear.

The situation with contacts is slightly different. They shouldn’t be confused.

@Mindymomo

I don’t think you will be popular standing in a queue coughing. I went for my booster Friday, first question before going in was do you have any covid symptoms, if you say cough, they will ask you to come back another day.

That'll be interesting, I cough constantly and it gets worse when I'm stressed. I can pretty much guarantee I'll be coughing in the queue.

(Obviously if I had a bug of any sort I wouldn't go)

@MilkCereal

Ok thanks, I work in a school, we dont isolate whilst awaiting pcr results we have to be in school. I'll book pcr now.

You should be if your symptomatic. It’s a legal requirement.

You have a new cough so you need a pcr and to isolate until you get a result. This has been the law for over a year.