Plea Not To Attend St Luke’s Or GP Surgeries For Covid Tests

Harborough’s NHS bosses are urging people not to go to GP practices or St Luke’s Hospital to try and get a Coronavirus test.

Despite difficulties in accessing tests through the government’s on-line and phone system, due to massive demand, they say tests are not available at those locations and you risk spreading the virus if you attend.

Professor Azhar Farooqi, Chair of Leicester City Clinical Commissioning Group said: “We understand that some people are having difficulty accessing a test but people must follow the process and book online or call 119. A test will not be given at hospital or in a GP practice and strict rules on infection control and social distancing means we need to carefully manage the flow of patients going into these locations.”

There is also a plea for people to only get a test if they have symptoms of Covid-19.

Mike Sandys, Director of Public Health for Leicestershire said: “I want people to book a test – only if they have covid symptoms. Testing is absolutely key to getting the number of cases down in the city and county. As for the rest of us – continue to follow the advice around physical distancing, hand washing, wearing a face covering and self-isolating if you need to. It’s down to all of us.”

Tests for adults and children need to be booked online or by calling 119. The NHS is experiencing more people trying to ring 111 about testing but we need to make sure that 111 is protected for people who are ringing about other medical and health issues.