Plans to no longer test the close contacts of positive Covid-19 cases are counterproductive, according to public health expert Professor Anthony Staines.
It was announced on New Year’s Eve that close contacts of infected people will no longer be automatically tested for the virus, as the State's test-and-trace system has come under intense strain during the latest infection surge.
The HSE said the step is being taken as a temporary measure to maintain effective turnaround times for testing and contact tracing and to ensure those who are symptomatic are prioritised.
“One of the basics of public health is the more you know about the cases you're dealing with the better,” says Prof Staines.
There was also the real concern that if people were not tested, they would not be “in the system” and would not be contact traced which was important for breaking down transmission of the disease, he explained.
Testing is important both administratively and psychologically for people.
“They may continue to behave in ways that increase spread of the disease, so testing is important both administratively and psychologically for people,” he added.
Any possibility of ramping up testing capacity should be done, with a number of testing facilities not in use at the moment, Prof Staines said.
“I think we should give serious consideration to bringing them online. I'm not a testing person and I don't know the feasibility or otherwise of this, but I think we should be testing as much as we possibly can at this stage.”
This could be the last lockdown, but it was not going to happen by accident, he added.
“Unless there's a very clear, coherent plan for that to happen, we are looking into potentially several more lockdowns before the vaccines kick in,” Prof Staines said.
It comes as the widespread cancellation of hospital services is expected in the coming days as the heath system works to manage rates of Covid-19 hospital admissions “beyond any projections”.
Officials are considering halting daycase and other elective procedures, as happened during the first wave of the pandemic.
Political sources have also indicated that schools may remain closed next week due to the recent and “unsustainable” rise in Covid-19 infections.
