Wales’ new coronavirus
testing strategy has been published today [Wednesday 15] by
Health Minister Vaughan Gething.
Speaking
from The Senedd, Swansea East MS, Mike Hedges said… ‘it is good to be back in
Cardiff Bay after a gap of four months. I am pleased that one of the first
things I heard this morning was the news of the new testing strategy. I welcome
it as it enables people to access tests quickly and have the results back
quickly too. It also provides clear direction for testing of future testing and
for working to test all patients of residential homes on a weekly basis. I am
glad to see the Welsh Labour Government putting people’s health at the heart of
its virus response’
Over
the past three months, the Welsh Government and Public Health Wales
have worked together to build a national testing
infrastructure, which means that anyone who displays coronavirus symptoms
can get a test quickly and easily.
Today’s
new strategy builds on the latest scientific evidence and
focuses on four priority areas:
- Contact tracing - to prevent the spread of the disease among the wider population.
- Delivering NHS services - to support the safety of staff and patients.
- Protecting vulnerable groups - to safeguard groups at greater risk of Covid-19.
- Developing future delivery - to use surveillance and new technologies to improve our understanding of the virus.
There
are currently two different forms of testing in Wales; the antigen virus
detection test which shows if someone currently has the virus, and the antibody
test which is used to determine whether a person has been previously
infected.
The
new strategy also looks at the role and purpose
of asymptomatic testing and determines that this
will continue to be used where there is the
greatest risk - such as among our older populations and health and care
workers.
It
has also been confirmed the weekly testing programme for care homes will
continue for another 4 weeks, with the data on prevalence rates closely
monitored. If prevalence rates remain at the current low levels then the
testing cycle will move to fortnightly.
Minister
for Health and Social Services, Vaughan Gething, said:
“This
strategy sets out the way forward for testing as we emerge from
lockdown, with the prevalence of Covid-19 reducing from the peak we saw
just a few weeks ago. It also makes preparations for
a possible second wave of coronavirus in the autumn.
“We
now have a national testing infrastructure that means anyone who needs a test
can access one. This enables our contact tracing system to help control
the transmission of the disease as lockdown measures are eased.
“Our NHS
Wales Test, Trace, Protect service is fundamental to helping us to
find a way to live with the disease until a vaccine or treatment is available.
“There
are still areas where we know we need to improve and we are working hard
to ensure more test results are returned within 24 hours. Over the weeks
and months ahead, we’ll make the most of new testing technologies and
be ready to seize the opportunities that these offer.”
ENDS
Notes:
https://gov.wales/covid-19-testing-strategy
https://llyw.cymru/strategaeth-profi-covid-19
No comments:
Post a Comment