It is possible that the planned mass screening tests for coronavirus will be mandatory in Małopolska. When will the final decision be made? And when will the tests even be conducted? Health Minister Adam Niedzielski gave the dates.
Nothing final!
No final decisions have been made as to how we will do it. We take into account different variants. It may be such a method that we will give family doctors permission so that everyone can come to the clinic and undergo a test. And in this model, the tests would be voluntary. The second model may involve the use of the entire network of drive true points, residents would receive referrals for tests. And in this case – if we chose such a model – it would probably be obligatory to perform the test – said Adam Niedzielski, the Minister of Health in the morning interview of RMF FM.
A decision will be made this week whether coronavirus tests will be mandatory.
Minister Niedzielski was also asked when mass tests, e.g. in Małopolska they will begin at all, he stated that “if we chose the first of the above-mentioned models, testing could actually start immediately, in the case of the second model it would probably take about a week or two for organized logistics”.
Final decisions are to be made this week.
Let us remind you that, according to the announcement of the Ministry of Health, Małopolska will be one of the 3 voivodeships that will be covered by screening tests for coronavirus.
How will the tests be done?
The research will be carried out using antigen tests for the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The test detects the presence of specific proteins (antigens) in a nasopharyngeal swab and can therefore confirm an ongoing infection.
Credibility?
When asked about the credibility of the rapid screening tests for coronavirus, the Minister of Health said that “indeed these tests have high sensitivity in the group of people who have symptoms and high multiplication of the virus in the body, while in a lighter condition these tests do not always come out positive, i.e. they are so-called false negative “.
Antigen tests to be made available
At the end of October, Health Minister Adam Niedzielski announced that antigen tests will be the same basis for determining the presence of coronavirus as PCR tests. Rapid antigen tests give the result after only a dozen or so minutes. They are to be performed mainly in hospitals, in HEDs, and emergency rooms, but you can also do them yourself.
Case study: Slovakia
Screening, also with the use of antigen tests, was performed by Slovakia on almost the entire 5.5 million population (except for children up to 10 years of age). A positive result was obtained for about 1% of the population.
Read the original article, in Polish language, on the Gazeta Krakowska site.
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The Twisted Red LadyBug
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