Testing times

Monday 13 April 2020

With a number of people having questions about how corona virus tests are done in Guernsey and what the criteria for testing is, a series of videos have been shared online to answer some of those queries.

The States website has a dedicated section devoted to covid-19 with the latest test results and statistics.

The covid-19 pages can be found HERE. 

The page carrying information about how many tests have been conducted and the results is updated daily, with the latest statistics from Sunday 12 April showing 218 people have now tested positive for covid-19, while 48 people have recovered from the virus. Of the positive patients, six have sadly died while there are three further 'presumptive deaths' which mean those three people hadn't been tested for the virus when they died but they are believed to have had it.

Pictured: The latest statistics, posted at 16:45 Sunday 12 April. 

Nearly 1500 people have tested negative for the virus, while 80 more people are waiting for their results.

Those results are coming back quicker now that testing is being done on-island, with staff at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital trained on newly installed equipment. 

It was first commissioned at the end of March and can process up to 40 samples per day. Up to 35 samples a day are still being processed at a laboratory in Colindale in the UK.

Pictured: A series of videos have been published explaining how testing for corona virus works in Guernsey. You can see them by clicking HERE. 

While initially testing was limited to those who had returned to the Bailiwick from an affected area and who showed symptoms of covid-19, this was recently extended to the following groups as a result of on-island testing:

• Up to 30 patients attending primary care with respiratory symptoms
• All patients who are admitted to the hospital or attend the Emergency Department with respiratory symptoms;
• Any other patient in the community, for example in a residential and nursing home, where the GP is concerned about possible COVID-19
• Any other urgent requests such as to release emergency crews who are contacts of suspected cases

Testing for those people who return to the Bailiwick who are symptomatic (fever, cough or shortness of breath) is still available, and for those who are identified as symptomatic contacts of a confirmed case of covid-19.

These tests are carried out at a drive-through testing facility at the harbour.