Updated 2 hours ago
THE DEPARTMENT OF Health tonight released updated guidelines for PCR and antigen testing as well as changes in the number of days people who are Covid-positive must self-isolate.
In a statement tonight, the department said it was changing the testing regimen due to “very high volumes of disease” across the country.
The new rules include:
- Symptomatic people aged 4 to 39 years should self-isolate immediately and perform regular antigen testing rather than reserving a PCR test. Anyone with an antigen test that detects COVID-19 should request a confirmatory PCR test. Those who have undergone repeated “undetected” antigen testing should continue to self-isolate for up to 48 hours after their symptoms resolve.
- Symptomatic healthcare workers should continue to seek PCR testing.
- Anyone with an underlying disease that puts them at a higher risk of serious disease or anyone with a clinical problem should contact their GP.
- All other symptomatic people (those aged 0 to 3 and those over 40) should seek a PCR test as soon as they show symptoms of Covid.
Self-isolation rules
Currently, the HSE advises adults who receive a positive PCR test result for Covid to self-isolate for 10 days from the onset of symptoms.
However, this is reduced to seven days, with a few conditions attached.
People over the age of 13, who have received their booster or who are fully vaccinated should self-isolate for seven days from the onset of symptoms. They should not be released from isolation until after seven days if symptoms have resolved significantly or completely during the last two of those seven days.
Those released from isolation after seven days (days 8-10 after symptom onset) should:
- Limit close contact with other people outside their home as much as possible, especially in crowded, enclosed or poorly ventilated spaces
- Wear a face shield in crowded, confined or poorly ventilated spaces and where they are in close contact with other people
- Test for antigen before entering crowded, confined or poorly ventilated spaces and before having close contact with other people outside their home
- Avoid contact with anyone who is at higher risk of serious illness if infected with COVID-19
- Work from home, unless it is essential to attend in person
- Observe all other elementary measures to protect public health.
Earlier today, the Irish Organization of Nurses and Midwives (INMO) called for all activities except emergency care to be reduced in the public hospital system as the problems of capacity increase.
There are now 287 patients on carts in hospitals across the country, according to INMO figures.
“We are once again seeing a high number of people presenting to emergency departments across the country with 287 patients on carts today,” said INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha.
“Our public health system is too small to try to provide emergency care, Covid care, and perform elective treatment. Urgent elective works must be given priority via the private hospital system, ”said Ní Sheaghdha.
Mullingar Regional Hospital, Letterkenny University Hospital and Portiuncula University Hospital have “acted in crisis mode” for the past 48 hours “due to the high number of people presenting to their respective emergency departments” , she said.
The newspaper yesterday reported that paramedics were ordered to avoid bringing patients to Wexford General Hospital on Tuesday evening after the hospital’s emergency department was overrun with patients.
“Unless an urgent and achievable plan is developed by the HSE, we will continue to see incidents like this through January and February,” said Ní Sheaghdha.
“Such incidents are inevitable due to the lack of an HSE Plan B with regards to hospital capacity,” she said.
“Every year between Christmas and New Years we see a spike in footfall in our emergency departments, but now in the context of Covid, especially with the highly transmissible variant Omicron, it’s totally irresponsible that we don’t always have no plan B in place for our ability to scale within our hospital acute care system, ”she added.
“We need private hospitals on the ground so that our health service can act as one during this extremely difficult time.”
Yesterday morning at 8 a.m., 586 people were hospitalized with Covid-19, including 93 in intensive care.
Last night, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said all current epidemiological indicators are a “cause for concern” and hospitalizations have increased in recent days to levels not seen since January 2021.
“In recent days, we have seen an increase in new hospital admissions of Covid-19 patients, to levels not seen since January 2021,” said Dr Holohan.
“On two consecutive days this week, more than 100 patients with Covid-19 have either been admitted to hospital or received a ‘detected’ test result while in hospital. “
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said Omicron remains a “serious threat” as it continues to spread rapidly across the country.
He encouraged people to get a booster shot, saying it was the best protection against the variant.
According to Martin, 2.08 million reminders have been administered so far, including 417,000 in the past week.
Omicron continues to spread rapidly and poses a serious threat.
I appreciate everyone’s hard work to keep people safe during this time.
Our best protection is the booster. 2.08 million doses were distributed, 417,000 last week.
Let’s continue – please get yourself a reminder.
– Michael Martin (@MichealMartinTD) December 30, 2021
In Northern Ireland, people will now be required to self-isolate for seven days instead of ten, provided they receive a negative antigen result on the sixth and seventh days.
This follows the same reduction measure England took last week for fully vaccinated people to avoid staff absences in frontline sectors.
Deputy Prime Minister Michelle O’Neill said the Stormont executive met today to discuss Covid-19 in Northern Ireland, and that Omicron currently accounts for over 90% of their cases.
O’Neill said ministers would continue to monitor the situation and asked people to take the recall and limit their contact with others.
Maternity restrictions
At the University of Limerick maternity ward, increased visitor restrictions and infection control measures have been put in place following a Covid-19 outbreak in its inpatient wards.
Access by designated support partners to UMHL inpatient services is now “limited to a two-hour window per day between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.,” according to a statement released by the hospital this morning.
“These slots will be coordinated at the service level by our staff, who will be directly linked to service users and designated support partners.”
The hospital said, “We recognize that this represents a significant reduction in access to our inpatient services. We will facilitate additional access for compassionate inpatients on a case-by-case basis when these restrictions cause considerable distress.
“We are committed to increasing partner access to our inpatient services as soon as possible.
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“An online system is available for designated support partners to complete a Covid-19 questionnaire before going to the hospital. We also encourage partners to consider having an antigen test before visiting UMHL if they have one at home.
Management said the new restrictions only affect its inpatient services.
He said: “Designated Support Partners continue to be allowed access to the following areas of UMHL, regardless of their vaccination status, once a Covid-19 questionnaire and temperature check have been completed. at the reception of the hospital “.
These areas include the labor room (throughout labor and delivery); theater (including elective and emergency cesarean section); NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) / HDU (high dependency unit) which have designated time slots for fathers / parents of babies; EPAU (early pregnancy assessment unit); high-risk emergency admissions; 12 week analysis; analysis of anomalies.
The hospital urged designated support partners “not to enter the hospital if they are showing symptoms of Covid-19.”
The Covid epidemic was declared in a hospital ward on December 28 “after a number of patients tested positive,” he said.
Management added that the restrictions on all inpatient services were “a precautionary measure” and were “introduced at a time of high community transmission affecting patients and staff”.
With reporting by Garreth MacNamee, David Raleigh, Lauren Boland and Tadgh McNally
.