'Huge step forward' as first batch of new rapid Covid testing kits arrive in region
Health chiefs in the West Midlands and Staffordshire are preparing to roll out mass Covid testing after taking delivery of the first batch of 10,000 kits.
Lateral flow tests, with a turnaround time of under an hour, have now been distributed to 67 parts of the country, including Wolverhampton, Dudley, Staffordshire and Birmingham.
Clive Wright, the Covid regional convener for the West Midlands, said the kits were "under the control" of each local authority involved in the pilot scheme.
He said: "It is up to each director of public health to determine how they are going to use them.
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"They are using them differently in the authorities across the West Midlands, depending on their priorities, and how they the new technologies best match the need alongside the existing testing regime.
"What that will deliver is different approaches, and the opportunity to learn from what works best.
"It is quite an exciting time in terms of testing, and a huge step forward in terms of the numbers and the speed at which we can test."
Wolverhampton Council is planning to focus on testing in places of worship, while Birmingham Council leader Ian Ward said the authority was setting up dedicated testing facilities for the kits to be deployed.
Further batches of test kits are expected to follow in the coming weeks.
New rapid testing in full flow with school roll-out now on the cards
In Staffordshire, public health workers in Stoke-on-Trent have started community testing, administering to residents the first 125 lateral flow tests from its Government allocation of 10,000.
The new rapid mass testing could be rolled out to Stoke schools within weeks, its leaders revealed, as the city recorded its highest ever Covid-19 infection rate.
Health officials in the city, which has the highest seven-day positive test case rate of any council area in the West Midlands, are also planning to offer lateral flow tests to businesses.
Stoke’s council leader Abi Brown described the current infection rate rise as “alarming” and “hugely concerning”.
The tests, which can provide a result within 20 minutes without any lab processing, are being used in Stoke and Liverpool before being rolled out.
Following those pilots, the Government announced earlier this week that 67 local authority areas will receive 600,000 of the tests, which involve swabbing the mouth and nostrils. It is understood that in Wolverhampton, which is one of the areas getting the tests, centres will be set up in churches and faith centres across the city. But while most of the West Midlands and Staffordshire is involved, there is no quick testing being made available in Shropshire.
Rising
During an earlier trial in Stoke, the city tested 927 public sector employees including nurses, frontline council workers and care staff over an 18-day period.
Ms Brown said a “very small handful of people” tested positive as a result.
The council has said it will now be working with schools and businesses with a view to rolling out testing to other locations across the city in the coming weeks.
Latest figures from NHS Digital show cases are still rising across the city, a week after a national lockdown came into force. Stoke’s own health data shows the infection case rate for the city is now 479.4 per 100,000 people, with 302 new cases in a day.
The latest NHS bed occupancy data shows the University of North Midlands Trust which runs both the Royal Stoke and Stafford’s County hospitals had 222 Covid-positive patients on November 3.
Ms Brown said: “Coronavirus cases continue to rise in the city at an alarming rate. Today’s figures are the highest we’ve seen in the city at any point, which is hugely concerning.
"Aside from people following the public health guidance, our next line of defence is testing. The more people we can test, the more we’ll be able to bring this virus under control. Generally, we are not seeing enough people come forward to be tested and there is considerable capacity at venues across the city.
“I would urge anyone with any symptoms, no matter how mild, to book a test.”
Dr Paul Edmondson-Jones, director of adult social care, health and integration at Stoke council, said rolling out the new tests to the community will help “to stop the disturbing spread of coronavirus in the city”.
He added: “We continue to see more and more people being admitted to hospital as a result of coronavirus and we are doing everything we can to try and combat the spread.”
