Drive-through testing for SARS-CoV-2 in symptomatic health and social care workers and household members: an observational cohort study

The requirement for health and social care workers to self-isolate when they or their household contacts develop symptoms consistent with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection can lead to critical staff shortages in the context of a pandemic. In this report, we descr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Thorax 2020-12, Vol.75 (12), p.1109-1111
Main Authors: Parcell, Benjamin J, Brechin, Kathryn, Allstaff, Sarah, Park, Meg, Third, Wendy, Bean, Susan, Hind, Chris, Farmer, Rajiv, Chandler, Daniel, Chalmers, James D
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Antibodies, Viral - analysis
Brief Communication
Cohort analysis
Community
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
COVID-19 - diagnosis
COVID-19 - epidemiology
COVID-19 - virology
COVID-19 diagnostic tests
Epidemics
Follow-Up Studies
Health Personnel - statistics & numerical data
Health services
Hospitals
Humans
Infections
Medical personnel
Observational studies
Observational Studies as Topic
Pandemics
SARS-CoV-2 - immunology
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
Social Support
Social workers
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Summary:The requirement for health and social care workers to self-isolate when they or their household contacts develop symptoms consistent with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection can lead to critical staff shortages in the context of a pandemic. In this report, we describe the implementation of a drive-through testing service in a single National Health Service region in Scotland. From 17 March 2020 to 11 April 2020, 1890 SARS-CoV-2 reverse transcription PCR assay (RT-PCR) tests were performed. 22% of tests were positive. Allowing the remaining 78% of staff to return to work within 24 hours was estimated to save over 8000 working days during the peak pandemic period.
ISSN:0040-6376
1468-3296
DOI:10.1136/thoraxjnl-2020-215128