Antibody testing message from Dorothy Hosein, Chief Executive

Good afternoon everybody,

As you may already be aware, antibody testing for Covid-19 is being rolled out.

As a Trust, we are currently working to determine how the process will look for our staff and we will share that information with you as soon as we have it, which I hope will be later today.  This testing supports the next phase in our national effort to track, trace and reduce transmission of the Covid-19 virus. Our aim is to make the test available to everyone over the next few weeks.

The test is a simple blood test and is available to all staff, whether you are in a clinical, administrative or support role. Taking part should not interfere with your work routine. You will be asked to fill out a consent form and the blood test will be carried out by a qualified member of our own staff and processed through NHS pathology labs. The details of how and where you can book a test will be available on Need To Know shortly.

The results will be communicated to you individually as soon as possible. They will also be collated anonymously at a national level in order to provide information on the prevalence of COVID-19 and to understand more about how it spreads in different parts of the country. The results will not be added to employment records. Please remember that although a positive test may show you have antibodies there is currently no evidence to show it means you cannot be re-infected with the virus, or pass it on to others, or have protective immunity. All the guidance around infection prevention and control measures and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) must continue regardless of the result of an antibody test. The antibody tests will work alongside the existing swab testing (PCR) which determines whether someone currently has the virus.

Thank you all for your support.  Some FAQs will soon be available on Need To Know and if you have any further questions please raise with your line manager. We want to make sure that EEAST’s participation in this national exercise will be as efficient as possible for everyone.

Kind regards,

Dorothy Hosein, Chief Executive

 

0 Comments
Leave a Comment
Name (required)
Email Address (required, never displayed)
Enter a message

(all comments are moderated - your submission will be posted on approval.)