Why Are People Still Testing and Subsequently Isolating With Mild or Asymptomatic Covid?

[Dave91131]

Pretty much as the thread title says - given that for some months now there has been no requirement for one to isolate / stay off work or school if infected with Covid, why does it seem so many people are still testing and staying off work for days at a time when there's no requirement to do so and in a great many cases they feel absolutely fine?

My better half has more social media contacts than I could shake a stick at, and on a virtually daily basis I pick out from what is usually just background noise "so and so has Covid and they're off work" or "so and so's kids have Covid they're all off school".

Have we not lost enough of our lives already, or have people been brainwashed in to sticking elongated cotton buds up their noses and down their throats and losing multiple days of pay and education multiple times for ever more? And yes, you guessed it, the same so and so's who do isolate are back on Faceache or whatever social media channel a week or two later moaning that they can't afford this or can't pay that.

What are people's views on this?

 

[Runningaround]

To find out what ailment you are currently affected by, quite handy really as you can then be prescribed the medication to target that illness, or pop to the chemist and avoid the GP. And if you are ill enough to need treatment you can pass on to the doctors that you do or do not have Covid based on your recent test, which means they can concentrate on looking for something else or treat it sooner.
Shame you can't test for other ailments as you can then treat that directly rather than wondering that your either infected by a virus or carrying a bacterial infection.

 

[Isaiah]

Spot on Dave.

 

[Huntergreed]

A lot of people I know still are! Had many refuse to come into work/to social events due to “a positive test” (which they need to pay for now) - such a shame.

Think the fear is they’ll “pass it on to the vulnerable” - plus they’ve been misled by the media so heavily over the past 2 years

 

[bramling]

Pretty much as the thread title says - given that for some months now there has been no requirement for one to isolate / stay off work or school if infected with Covid, why does it seem so many people are still testing and staying off work for days at a time when there's no requirement to do so and in a great many cases they feel absolutely fine?

My better half has more social media contacts than I could shake a stick at, and on a virtually daily basis I pick out from what is usually just background noise "so and so has Covid and they're off work" or "so and so's kids have Covid they're all off school".

Have we not lost enough of our lives already, or have people been brainwashed in to sticking elongated cotton buds up their noses and down their throats and losing multiple days of pay and education multiple times for ever more? And yes, you guessed it, the same so and so's who do isolate are back on Faceache or whatever social media channel a week or two later moaning that they can't afford this or can't pay that.

What are people's views on this?

I fully expect the same people at my work will catch the special Covid Christmas variant, which seems to affect certain people only, and has so far affected such people on or around the 22nd December both 2020 and 2021. That is perhaps at least a partial answer to the question.

 

[Hans]

Herd like behaviour, peer pressure, for some the true belief it is a deadly virus and for many covid is the most exciting thing to happen to them for many years, especially if they use social media.

 

[Russel]

I fully expect the same people at my work will catch the special Covid Christmas variant, which seems to affect certain people only, and has so far affected such people on or around the 22nd December both 2020 and 2021. That is perhaps at least a partial answer to the question.

I think this will be the same for most workplaces. It'll be the same people that seem to catch Covid on an almost monthly basis.

 

[Jamiescott1]

I tested last week because I was interested if it was a cold or covid.
I tested positive but my routine didn't change. I went to work, got the train, socialised etc

 

[westv]

I work from home so I'd not be in the office anyway. If I still did and I felt unwell there is no way I'd go to work anyway covid or no covid.

 

[Dent]

To find out what ailment you are currently affected by, quite handy really as you can then be prescribed the medication to target that illness, or pop to the chemist and avoid the GP. And if you are ill enough to need treatment you can pass on to the doctors that you do or do not have Covid based on your recent test, which means they can concentrate on looking for something else or treat it sooner.
Shame you can't test for other ailments as you can then treat that directly rather than wondering that your either infected by a virus or carrying a bacterial infection.

The treatments for mild cold/flu symptoms are the same regardless of which particular strain of cold/flu is causing them, if its asymptomatic then there is nothing to treat anyway.

 

[Dai Corner]

It's the 'right thing to do' to avoid passing it on. Some people are going to get severe symptoms, especially if they have underlying conditions. If the employer offers full sick pay it's also a some extra paid leave without using up your annual allowance.

This doesn't just apply to Covid, of course.

 

[Bayum]

Sensible thing to do in my opinion. You don’t know who you may encounter and inadvertently cause illness to or how that’s going to impact subsequent close contacts etc. It’s five days.

 

[Fyldeboy]

Although there is no legal requirement to isolate, the advice is still to do so. This isn't for your benefit, it is for societys benefit. Sure, covid isn't the threat it was but there are still 'vulnerable' people (I was advised to shield) who shouldn't have to imprison themselves for the rest of their life to stay safe.
Iirc isolation is now 5 days, which is proportionate to the reduced risk.

On a tangent though - I'm sure comments about Christmas Covid are spot on and its a sad endictment.

 

[Dent]

To those saying its the "right thing to do" "to protect the vulnerable", how many other normally mild ailments which could be more servere to the vulnerable are you regularly testing for for the same reason? How many were you regularly testing for before 2020?

 

[westv]

To those saying its the "right thing to do" "to protect the vulnerable", how many other normally mild ailments which could be more servere to the vulnerable are you regularly testing for for the same reason? How many were you regularly testing for before 2020?

Is anybody still regularly testing? I thought people were only doing it if they thought they were positive.
Apart from a cold, I can't think of any other transmissable disease that I would carry on as normal if I got it.

 

[S&CLER]

It's still required to show a negative test to be admitted to visit a care home or hospital, which seems perfectly reasonable. At the care home I visit, they let me see my friend in the garden without a test and without masking up.

 

[Dai Corner]

To those saying its the "right thing to do" "to protect the vulnerable", how many other normally mild ailments which could be more servere to the vulnerable are you regularly testing for for the same reason? How many were you regularly testing for before 2020?

There aren't (generally available) tests for other ailments but the symptoms are well-known and responsible people will try to avoid passing them on, especially to the vulnerable. "I won't come round this weekend Grandad. I have a cough and don't want you to get a chest infection with your asthma and dodgy heart".

 

[Dent]

There aren't (generally available) tests for other ailments but the symptoms are well-known and responsible people will try to avoid passing them on, especially to the vulnerable. "I won't come round this weekend Grandad. I have a cough and don't want you to get a chest infection with your asthma and dodgy heart".

Why do your need to test to determine whether the cold your have happens to be this one particular strain in order to do that? The test doesn't tell you anything useful when anyone that vulnerable to this particular strain of cold would also be vulnerable to any other.

 

[Dai Corner]

Why do your need to test to determine whether the cold your have happens to be this one particular strain in order to do that? The test doesn't tell you anything useful when anyone that vulnerable to this particular strain of cold would also be vulnerable to any other.

You don't need to but because testing kits were developed in response to the pandemic and are widely available you can.

 

[Hans]

There aren't (generally available) tests for other ailments but the symptoms are well-known and responsible people will try to avoid passing them on, especially to the vulnerable. "I won't come round this weekend Grandad. I have a cough and don't want you to get a chest infection with your asthma and dodgy heart".

The tests are for coronaviruses not covid specifically, so the pcr tests, when run at such high cycles, showed any residue infection from any coronavirus a person may have had previous to covid. The lft tests are probably not worth the money anyone pays for them. So the tests are not showing anything. Previous to March 2020 people stayed at home if they were to ill with a cold or flu, if they didn't feel too bad they carried on with normal life. They did not test, did not wear a mask, did not expect society to change their way of life to protect them. Nobody needs to know what cold or flu infection or virus you have, having covid or a positive test has become a badge of honour for many.

 

[Dent]

You don't need to but because testing kits were developed in response to the pandemic and are widely available you can.

So you're spending money on a test that doesn't tell you anything useful just because you can? If you want to waste your own money then that's up to you, but it's a silly waste.

 

[Dai Corner]

So you're spending money on a test that doesn't tell you anything useful just because you can? If you want to waste your own money then that's up to you, but it's a silly waste.

Agreed. Except it's wasting the taxpayer's money in many cases.

 

[Hans]

Agreed. Except it's wasting the taxpayer's money in many cases.

The money which goes to China who make the tests.

 

[Dent]

Agreed. Except it's wasting the taxpayer's money in many cases.

If your accept that the test doesn't tell you anything useful then I'm a bit puzzled why you claimed earlier that talking the test was the 'right thing to do'.

Tests haven't been generally available at the textures taxpayers expense since March.

 

[Dai Corner]

If your accept that the test doesn't tell you anything useful then I'm a bit puzzled why you claimed earlier that talking the test was the 'right thing to do'.

Tests haven't been generally available at the textures taxpayers expense since March.

I meant avoiding passing Covid and other ailments on was the right thing to do.

I was thinking about testing of health and social care workers. I think that still goes on and is taxpayer funded but I might be wrong?

 

[Cdd89]

I would minimise my contacts if possible, but not “isolate” — which is the same as I’d do for any other common illness. “Isolation” belongs in 20/21 and has highly negative connotations for good reason.

I have a cupboard full of hundreds of NHS covid tests that I had been (mis)using for travel testing purposes, that I really ought to chuck out. I only haven’t because I don’t entirely trust travel testing not to return this winter, like it did last year. But they’ll expire next year and then that will be that.

 

[Hans]

I meant avoiding passing Covid and other ailments on was the right thing to do.

I was thinking about testing of health and social care workers. I think that still goes on and is taxpayer funded but I might be wrong?

This never happened pre March 2020 so why should it now? There of course are exceptions but that would normally be the highly infectious diseases which would be suspected (due symptoms and actual illness) and in a hospital environment.

Some types of menigitis can kill extremely quickly, for example during a long journey by train, aircraft or ferry, the symptoms come on very quickly and without very quick treatment, will kill. There are tests available - why are people not testing for this as they do for covid? The motto "to protect others" is the mantra given to justify the restrictions, and in this thread testing, why do the same people who continue to test not "protect others" by testing for every possible infectious disease using the "just in case" principle?

 

[Dai Corner]

This never happened pre March 2020 so why should it now? There of course are exceptions but that would normally be the highly infectious diseases which would be suspected (due symptoms and actual illness) and in a hospital environment.

Some types of menigitis can kill extremely quickly, for example during a long journey by train, aircraft or ferry, the symptoms come on very quickly and without very quick treatment, will kill. There are tests available - why are people not testing for this as they do for covid? The motto "to protect others" is the mantra given to justify the restrictions, and in this thread testing, why do the same people who continue to test not "protect others" by testing for every possible infectious disease using the "just in case" principle?

Arguably they should test for things like that but it's a matter for public health officials and politicians? Have you raised it with your MP/MSP/MS?

 

[Hans]

Arguably they should test for things like that but it's a matter for public health officials and politicians? Have you raised it with your MP/MSP/MS?

I wouldn't want to raise it with them, the last thing I would want is for the "just in case" principle to become the norm, I was using the analogy as an example to show the futility of the constant covid testing and over reaction. If people do not feel well, but are not ill enough to seek medical help, then it is their choice as to what they do, if they want to stay at home that is fine, if they go to work that is fine but they should not expect others to change their life to protect them or constantly test to see if they have a cold. They should also not expect extra money to be given to them to stay at home.

There are many problems with the NHS, one of them is the constant testing for covid, it is open to abuse to ensure a few days off of work, plus ensures staffing levels are constantly low - the restrictions caused the backlog of people to be treated, GP's not seeing people mean more turn up an A&E, and yet there are not enough staff to deal with the situation, in part caused by the constant testing.

 

[Dent]

I would minimise my contacts if possible, but not “isolate” — which is the same as I’d do for any other common illness. “Isolation” belongs in 20/21 and has highly negative connotations for good reason.

So basically do the same for this strain of cold as you would for any other strain, so the test is irrelevant.

I have a cupboard full of hundreds of NHS covid tests that I had been (mis)using for travel testing purposes, that I really ought to chuck out. I only haven’t because I don’t entirely trust travel testing not to return this winter, like it did last year. But they’ll expire next year and then that will be that.

I don't thing the fee tests were ever accepted for travel, as far as I remember the requirement was always a certificate which you could only get from a commercial test provider.