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The government’s mass testing strategy has also come under fire. Doctors fear there will be no benefit.
As preparations for massive corona testing advance, health researchers are increasingly warning against a hasty approach. “In Austria we run the risk of falling into a chaotic, wasteful, ineffective and possibly harmful project,” says Andrea Siebenhofer-Kroitzsch, director of the Institute for Evidence-Based Health Services Research and General Practice and a member of the Crown Commission. .
This week, the institute posted a quality check of the planned comprehensive tests on its website. Therefore, only two of the 18 criteria discussed were met. Among other things, neither the logistics nor a post-test procedure are known in detail. “The population has the right to obtain clear information, especially about the benefits and harms of such a testing program. If 100,000 of the five million people tested receive a false positive result, that’s a problem, ”explains Siebenhofer-Kroitzsch. The antigen tests provided provide a rapid result and are ideal for testing the entire population, but the results must be confirmed with a second test. It should be clarified how ua Confirmation tests and contact follow-up expire.
In principle, the health care researcher supports the strategy of testing the general population for Corona to reduce the number of infections. “But the tests must be specific and regular.” That means the tests, regardless of whether they are positive or negative, should be done once, preferably several times a week, because they are a snapshot.
The expert asks for more planning. Test balloons would be suitable in heavily polluted districts or a small federal state. If the projection works, the model can be transferred to all of Austria.
