‘Highly stressful’ - Londoners affected by Covid test unavailability

Londoners with Covid-19symptoms have told how they “don’t know what to do” amid reports of a nationwide lack of testing availability.

The NHS Test & Trace website has been showing tests are unavailable to the public in large parts of England today.

Some Londoners have been unable to access tests for days, despite checking the service repeatedly, and being “extremely unwell” with what they believe to be coronavirus, but have been unable to confirm.

But a spokesperson for the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) which runs NHS Test & Trace said although some tests were available, “exceptionally high demand for PCR appointments can lead to temporary reduced availability in some areas”.

It comes amid reports that pharmacies are struggling to keep up with demand for lateral flow tests (LFTs) with people requesting kits “every five minutes”, according to pharmacy bosses.

Elaine, a carer for five disabled children in Southwark, south London, said her family had run out of LFTs over Christmas, and she had been unable to book a PCR test for several hours.

The 41-year-old, who did not want to give her last name, said: “We’re a family of seven, and ran out of LFTs - we’ve been trying to find some for the past three days and getting nowhere.

“None are available online, and when my husband took the code he was given to our local pharmacy, he was told by the pharmacist that their last delivery was on December 22.

“This morning we rang about fifteen pharmacies and libraries to see if there are any available. [We had] no luck anywhere and no one knows when to expect more.”

Elaine said she felt “greater urgency” after waking up this morning (Wednesday, December 29) with a new continuous cough, and she cannot go to a walk-in as she is vulnerable.

“I woke up coughing in the night and it’s been ongoing since,” she said.

“I’m clinically extremely vulnerable, so I can’t access the testing site. There’s no PCR tests online and I don’t know what we’re supposed to do now.”

Since speaking to LondonWorld, Elaine was able to book a PCR test via the NHS website, but is still concerned about the lack of LFTs locally.

She said: “I live in south east London. We’ve tried two Tesco and one Asda pharmacies, and all the independent local ones that we can think of.

“We are in Southwark, and covid has always been very bad in this area.”

Leyla Hannbeck, chief executive of the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies (AIMP), said a lack of rapid testing kits over Christmas and the New Year was posing issues.

She told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “Our members are telling us the demand for LFTs is very high at the moment due to the current guidelines around self-isolation.

“Pharmacies are reporting that every five minutes, approximately, somebody comes into the pharmacy asking for a test.

“But, unfortunately, because of the issues around supply being patchy and inconsistent, it means that those who come for the test don’t always get it, which is very stressful.

“People are doing the responsible thing wanting to be tested. We are in the Christmas area of time and New Year is just around the corner - people want to be with family and friends.”

While Lina, from Lewisham, said she has struggled to book a PCR test despite being “extremely unwell”, and described the system as “highly stressful”.

She said: “I ordered LFTs before Christmas and they’ve not arrived.

“I have been extremely unwell and went on the site everyday for the past three days, and there are no tests in London.

“No walk in, no drive in, no postal ones - the only place showing tests was in Scotland!

“It’s highly stressful because I had to put in my details first.”

The 31-year-old, who preferred not to give her full name, added: “I’m sick and disabled and I am mostly bed bound for 18 hours a day, and am not able to work due to my very poor health and have carers.

“I have tried several times today and on all other days an there are no tests. Even the news is showing there are none.”

A UKHSA spokesperson said: “PCR tests are currently available to book online. However, exceptionally high demand for PCR appointments can lead to temporary reduced availability in some areas.

“We have made 100,000 more PCR booking slots available per day since mid-December and we are continuing to rapidly expand capacity, with over half a million tests carried out on December 23 alone, delivery capacity doubled to 900,000 PCR and LFD test kits a day.

“If you are symptomatic, you should stay at home while you are waiting for a home test kit or a test site appointment.

“If you need to leave your home to get to a test site, wear a face covering, stay at least 2 metres apart from other people who you do not live with, and return home immediately afterwards.”

They added: “The UK’s testing programme is the biggest in Europe with almost 400 million tests carried out since the start of the pandemic.

“We are delivering record numbers of lateral flow tests to pharmacies across the country, with almost 8 million test kits being made available to pharmacies between today and New Year’s Eve.

“If you have not been able to get the test you need from gov.uk, please keep checking every few hours as more PCR and LFD tests become available every day.”

While Sky News reported that “during periods of exceptional demand there may be temporary pauses in ordering or receiving tests, to ensure we manage distribution across the system and support changing requirements for LFT and PCR tests.”