Coronavirus: NHS recovery threatened as test shortages mean staff have to self-isolate

NHS services are being put at risk because a lack of coronavirus testing is forcing many staff to self-isolate when they could be at work.

NHS Providers, which represents NHS trust leaders, says the recovery of services is being put in jeopardy while preparations for the winter pressures of COVID-19 and seasonal flu are also being hampered.

It said particular concerns had been raised in Bristol, Leeds and London and there was a lack of detailed operational information on the shortages, such as how long they will last.

Chief executive Chris Hopson told Sky News’ Kay Burley @ Breakfast show: “I was talking to chief executives in Leeds, in Bristol, in London – all of whom were saying ‘look, we’ve got staff off that we simply can’t afford to have off because they can’t get access to tests’.

“Part of the problem is, if you’ve got a family member who could have coronavirus and you can’t get a test, then you should be self-isolating.

“It’s not just actually the test for the individual member of staff, it’s also getting access to tests for their family members.”

Mr Hopson said NHS Providers believed demand for testing has “risen exponentially” since schools returned this month.

He accused the government of “not being as open as we would like about what’s going on” and instead focusing on Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s “Operation Moonshot” plan for a mass coronavirus testing regime – of 10 million tests a day – for early next year.

“I think governments, when they hit operational problems of this kind, they face some quite difficult choices,” Mr Hopson added.

“Do they try and politically communicate their way out of these problems, such as ‘look how many tests we’ve done, we’re going for a moon shot next year’.

“Or do they calmly and soberly explain what the problem is, how widespread it is, how long it’s going to last, so that they can actually help those organisations like the trusts we represent… actually deal with those problems.

“Certainly the trustees that we talk to are saying ‘please can we have a little less of the political communication, pretending all is well, and a little more of the honesty about what is going on here so we can actually deal with this and we know what we need to’.”

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NHS trusts were also said to be concerned about the impact of testing shortages on patients who need to be tested before being admitted for hospital treatment.

Speaker of the House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle MP, revealed he had received “numerous complaints” from constituents unable to book a test after displaying COVID-19 symptoms.

“This is completely unacceptable and totally undermines track and trace so I have raised my concerns with ministers to push for action to be taken as a matter of urgency,” he posted on Twitter.

Home Secretary Priti Patel told the Kay Burley @ Breakfast show that the capacity in laboratories to analyse tests “has been growing and growing”.

“We’re getting more tests in the system, that’s taking place across the country,” she said.

“We’re saying to everybody to get a test if you’re symptomatic.”

However, she acknowledged Health Secretary Matt Hancock’s previous admission that increasing the number of coronavirus tests had been “challenging”.

“It is growing, I know that it’s growing, it’s increasing,” she added.

“That comes with, obviously, the inevitable demand. The more tests that are in the system, you need more lab capacity as well.

Concerns have been growing over the testing regime as the number of coronavirus cases rise, with some people unable to book tests online or having to travel many miles to get tested.

At the weekend leaked documents revealed a backlog of 185,000 swabs. with large numbers of people unlikely to ever get their results.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has said testing capacity has been targeted at the hardest-hit areas following a rise in demand.

An NHS spokeswoman said: “Hospitals continue to fully comply with recommended patient and staff testing protocols.

“To further support the national Test and Trace programme, NHS hospital labs have now been asked to further expand their successful, fast turnaround and highly accurate, testing capacity.”

(c) Sky News 2020: Coronavirus: NHS recovery threatened as test shortages mean staff have to self-isolate