{"id":22963,"date":"2021-09-05T10:16:00","date_gmt":"2021-09-05T14:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=22963"},"modified":"2021-09-06T10:18:55","modified_gmt":"2021-09-06T14:18:55","slug":"hse-expects-september-will-be-a-busy-month-for-covid-19-testing-in-schools","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=22963","title":{"rendered":"HSE Expects September Will Be A Busy Month For Covid-19 Testing In Schools"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The HSE is already tracking and carrying out testing in several hundred schools (PA)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The State\u2019s Covid-19 testing program will be \u201cbusy\u201d in schools this month, a health official has said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Niamh O\u2019Beirne, the HSE national lead for testing and tracing, said on Sunday that the HSE \u201ccertainly expects schools to be busy from a testing perspective for the month of September\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said that the HSE was already referring schoolchildren for testing and tracking close contacts in schools since they re-opened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is expected that there will be a degree of transmission in schools but the advice from public health has remained as before and all the measures are in place within the schools.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said that testing in the 0-14 age group was 40 per cent higher than other age cohorts, but had so far shown a lower positivity rate of around 10 per cent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ms O\u2019Beirne, speaking several days after public transport returned to 100 per cent capacity, said that so far the data indicated that very few close contacts were being recorded from trains, buses and other forms of transport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She said that Ireland\u2019s testing capacity was not full and had \u201ca little bit of space\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The HSE is predicting that it will carry out between 18,000-20,000 tests on Monday \u2013 a figure close to the service\u2019s capacity for community testing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt depends whether it is transient, and just lasts for a few days as the peak, or whether we see a consistent demand at that level,\u201d Ms O\u2019Beirne told RTE radio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Saturday, Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin said Ireland should \u201ctake some heart\u201d from early indications that rates of Covid-19 may be declining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ms O\u2019Beirne said that trend was real, with referrals from the 15-24 age group declining.<\/p>\n

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