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THE HSE HAS confirmed that the testing of staff at meat and food processing has been suspended until next week to meet “the significant rise in demand for testing” in the community.
This evening, Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy posted on Twitter the contents of a letter from the HSE which said that a “decision was taken yesterday nationally to postpone Covid testing at food processing plants because of the increased capacity needed at the moment to deal with people with symptoms”.
In a statement, Carthy said this action was “reckless, inexplicable and poses a danger in the extreme to our communities”.
Significant clusters of Covid-19 have been linked to meat processing plants throughout the pandemic, and outbreaks in such facilities were a factor in the introduction of localised restrictions in Kildare, Offaly and Laois last month.
Unions have argued that conditions in such plants have contributed to the spread of Covid-19.
The recent spike in cases in Dublin, however, has been largely identified with spreading within households and, this evening, health officials urged people to limit their contacts.
A HSE spokesperson told TheJournal.ie this evening that such is the demand for testing within the community, the decision had been made to postpone the testing of staff in meat plants.
The spokesperson said: “Covid-19 testing of staff at meat and food processing facilities is being re-scheduled into next week.
This is a precautionary measure to allow us focus our resources on meeting the significant rise in demand for testing among people with coronavirus symptoms in the community. Testing demand nearly trebled on Monday with a requirement for over 13,000 community tests and over 3,000 hospital tests.
The HSE is liaising directly with facilities scheduled for testing and will re-schedule these next week.
“It is important to remember that where an outbreak occurs in a plant then normal mass testing will still occur in meat plants,” the spokesperson said. “Public Health will be in touch locally in those situations. In the meantime, if a staff member develops symptoms of coronavirus, we would ask them to self-isolate and phone a GP to be referred for a free coronavirus test.
Serial testing in meat plants which commenced on 21 August has yielded 40 positive cases so far and a positivity rate of 0.28%.
Pointing to a specific case, Sinn Féin’s Carthy said that answers must be urgently provided.
He said: “Last week, two workers in a meat processing plant in Tipperary tested positive for Covid-19. Mass testing of all workers was set to begin on Wednesday.
“That the HSE would suspend testing at a plant where a cluster has been discovered lays truth to government’s falsehoods on our testing capacity.”
Carthy also criticised the government for repeatedly failing to provide answers on Covid-19 in meat processing facilities, and said assertions that there is a capability of completing 100,000 tests a week “are now proven questionable at best”.
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So we stop testing the one area we know gives clusters of cases? Bonkers!!
@Berkieahern3: I think their is more than one area known for clusters.
@Berkieahern3: and we open pubs knowing it will increase the spread.
@Canyon: Can you back this up with any evidence?
@Robert Clifford: plenty reports from credible virologists around the world. Sorry, but cannot post links.
Joke of a healthcare system. Months to prepare and government did nothing. Ffs.
@Jordan Osullivan: yeah, they had nothing to do for the 6 months.
@RJ: I wouldn’t be known as a fan of this government but I think they are doing their best in the circumstances.
@Sean Higgins: might well be doing their best. The problem is it just isn’t nearly good enough.
@Johnny B: Totally. If this is our best then our standards are very low indeed. The health system and track and test should be the No. 1 priority. “We will need to test our way out of it” was the clear advice back in March. Until the government / HSE realised how much money and effort large scale testing would take and decided it wasn’t worth it (read: they couldn’t be bothered.) We were one of the first companies to lock down and we will be one of the last to emerge (after a second slow burn but still significant wave) because we didn’t get our act together. Wake up. We’re not getting a vaccine for quite some time so “hiding it out” is not a strategy.
@Patrick McConville: *countries
Government had 6 months to ramp up testing capacity. The HSE had a stated target of 100k tests per week for MAY.
It’s September and we can barely test 60k people a week.
HSE management should be sacked for gross incompetence.
If every resident of Wexford was being tested on a single day tomorrow, SF would say it should be happening in Donegal as well.
@sean de paore: & ff/GG would say the same in opposition
Let’s be honest; everyone with a fever, sore throat or sniffle is looking for a test nowadays.
@David Lee: so they should. Them the rules. You’d be irresponsible not to.
@l: With a 1.6% positivity rate of nearly 70 thousand tests over the past week or two, I’d disagree
@David Lee: BS. There is a protocol in place and a GP referral is required, people can’t just turn up at a testing centre with a sore throat and get a test.
@Gabriel Chagas: No, but I can call my GP tomorrow, tell her I’ve a sore throat and I’ve coughed twice, I guarantee il be sent for test.
@David Lee: it’s a long shot but it’s there and the repercussions for some is not good, so you’ve decided to gamble, on behalf of everyone you meet to. Nice.
Do you remember the mantra ” TEST,TEST,TEST” ? I expect that we will have another PPE and test facility shortages again this winter. So start stocking up on masks,gloves,hand sanitisers, etc . In Germany,any person can call into any doctor for a Covid Test and will get results within 2 hours.They can do it as often as they like. They decide,not the doctors with their endless list of prerequisite symptoms.This s how to supress the virus and keep 85 million people on their feet. Make testing user friendly here in Ireland.
Now the truth, the Testing is not fit for purpose
What is the point of starting then stopping…?What’s the point of a government then can’t do much of nothing ?
It would be useful that an explanation was given as to how in one day only GP referrals jumped from 4K -6 k to 14k and only for one day ? A cynical mind would say that requests were held on the system by a malfunction and released simultaneously and the following day referrals are not even at 300 ? Very odd and how convenient no more meat factory testing.
@Isabel Oliveira: Crazy that in this country the meat plants and creameries are not being tested 24/7.
What has cone head got to say about this,the lunatics are running the asylum.
Just chasing the virus…
See what’s coming down the line.. You never seen nothing yet. Disappointing result. But dam how thick are people.. some people with regard to the virus, dam imbecicles.
@Splat: so the government & HSE suspend testing in food processing , including in at least one where there are positive cases but you are blaming the people ? I don’t follow.
Just wondering does the meat from these infected plants make it’s way into the food chain????
No one telling us what precautions are being taken in this instance.
Once schools opened this was predicable. Its an attempt at herd immunity before winter sets in. I suppose with death rate so low its a calculated risk.
What is really annoying is that pharmacy’s no longer sell 100 Paracetamol 500mg Tablets without a prescription. Even after paying for a 2 minute doctors appointment instead of getting 100 tablets. Numbers of tablets in each tub have being reduced to either fifty or sixty. Hopefully under sterilised conditions but who knows how tablets are removed.
It opens the door to black market Paracetamol tablets or internet substandard products. Paracetamol has being shown to help and pharmacy’s as any business must increase profits. But its still annoying that 100 Paracetamol 500mg Tablets costs close to 65 euros including doctor appointment.
@leartius: sorry not 100 tablets but 50 or 60.
That’s a bit ridiculous. We know there are issues there. But then, they were probaly not expecting to test the close contacts of 307 people from yesterday.
have your say