Waiting for the test rate to rise
By Torunn
@Torunn (8607)
Norway
April 25, 2020 1:56am CST
My country has already a high test rate, but since we don't produce any of the chemicals needed ourselves they were running out of means to test people. That made some researcher at my university come up with a new test. They boil the sample and then use small magnetic balls that attach themselves to the DNA of virus.
Now we're all waiting for the test rate to rise. They claim they should be able to test 100 000 people a week at least, so now I hope it's just some weeks wait til they start testing as many as possible.
100 000 might not seem a lot, but I live in the third biggest city in Norway and it has less than 200 000 inhabitants, which means that in 2 weeks they could have tested the whole city and surroundings.
They don't test people to see if they're virus free yet, that's rather daft but I suppose it'll start now *crosses fingers*
What are the test criteria where you live? Would they test you if you wanted to?
Have you read about any new developments 'cause by the corona virus spread?
https://norwaytoday.info/news/researchers-in-trondheim-have-developed-a-new-corona-test-in-record-time/
16 people like this
16 responses
@LadyDuck (472114)
• Switzerland
25 Apr 20
You are among the countries that are performing more tests, similar to Switzerland and Portugal, the United States are far behind. Now a quick test is available here and they plan to test even more people.
Until now they tested those who had fever or symptoms that suggested it could have been the virus. From next week they are going to test all teachers and children and also all those who work in the food chains.
3 people like this
@Torunn (8607)
• Norway
25 Apr 20
I really wish they would start testing all teachers and children next week here, 'cause I'm so fed up with sitting at home. It's more chance for infection in full shopping malls than in school, but closing shops would have more short-term financial consequences.
Start of May though, then they should start a lot of testing.
We don't hear anything about Switzerland and Portugal in the news here, so I assume that even if the situation isn't good, it's controlled?
2 people like this
@LadyDuck (472114)
• Switzerland
25 Apr 20
@Torunn I agree that it's more chance for infection if big grocery stores, but food is a necessity and they did very little in the beginning to protect the workers and the customers.
Portugal is doing pretty good, Switzerland had many cases compared to the population but not many deaths, the hospitals did a good job.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (472114)
• Switzerland
26 Apr 20
@Torunn We only have food stores open for the moment. Starting from tomorrow the hardware stores and gardening centers. The other stores stay closed.
We have now the same system in the grocery stores, Plexiglas in front of the cashier, markings on the floor for distance, fresh bread in a paper bag, etc.
Check this site, you can rank the countries by number of cases, deaths , but also by number of tests performed. It is interesting
Live statistics and coronavirus news tracking the number of confirmed cases, recovered patients, tests, and death toll due to the COVID-19 coronavirus from Wuhan, China. Coronavirus counter with new cases, deaths, and number of tests per 1 Million populati
1 person likes this
@Butterfingers (66583)
• India
25 Apr 20
They are gradually increasing the tests but it's still very slow plus the testing kits received from China were also faulty so they even tested people twice and that wasted a lot of time
2 people like this
@Torunn (8607)
• Norway
25 Apr 20
@Butterfingers Yes, not all Chinese produce have a good reputation.
1 person likes this
@sprite1950 (30452)
• Corsham, England
21 Nov 21
In the UK the test rate is high. Our school children have to test twice a week and we can get Lateral Flow tests free from various places. I have had covid; I live with my 15 year old granddaughter and when she brought it home from school I knew I would get it. I tested negative that morning and positive in the evening. I felt as if I had a slight cold coming but I am confident that I didn't pass it on to anyone else because of the testing.
1 person likes this
@Torunn (8607)
• Norway
21 Nov 21
You must have caught it very fast, that's great! No walking around without symptoms, which is the problem for many I suppose.
The test criteria now are so weird here that if I need a test I'll just pretend to have lots of symptoms, so I get the most effective one.
1 person likes this
@sprite1950 (30452)
• Corsham, England
22 Nov 21
@Torunn I caught it within 4 days of my granddaughter testing positive. If we test positive with a rapid test we have to get a PCR to confirm it.and then isolate for 10 days from the PCR result.
1 person likes this
@Torunn (8607)
• Norway
22 Nov 21
@sprite1950 It used to be 10 days here, but now it's 5 days for vaccinated.
Or so it was last time I checked. The rules change a lot for isolation and quarantine too.
I haven't done either. I hope it wasn't too boring.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121715)
• Gainesville, Florida
28 Apr 20
In my city, we're still behind in testing people who are sick or showing symptoms of the virus, but we're slowly catching up. Unfortunately, our positive cases are still climbing, they don't expect us to reach our peak for another week. But we're slowly getting there,
1 person likes this
@Torunn (8607)
• Norway
28 Apr 20
@moffittjc There's definitly more women where I teach at the university, but that's because it's teachers education.
I think it's slightly more female students though, not sure what the boys do instead 'cause most of my ex-pupils are boys and studying. I don't think they'redriving too fast or catching corona by ignoring the rules either *crosses fingers*
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121715)
• Gainesville, Florida
28 Apr 20
@Torunn We already have a problem with a shortage of men even here where I live. Just at the university alone, there are 8000 more women than men.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (121715)
• Gainesville, Florida
28 Apr 20
@Torunn That’s why I love living in a university town, because the ratio works out so much better in my favor! Lol
1 person likes this
@Torunn (8607)
• Norway
25 Apr 20
Here they just put you in quarantine if you come from abroad. Normally I'd say "Even from Sweden" but now it's "Definitly if you come from Sweden."
I think it would be better for everyone if you could have a day or two in quarantine for the test instead of 2 weeks no matter how you feel. That's going to make a lot of people go shopping in Sweden again, but then they probably should say that you can't have two tests a week. It's so much cheaper to shop in Sweden that quite a few are desperate to get there.
1 person likes this
@LowRiderX (22903)
• Serbia
25 Apr 20
Norway is one of the few countries that amazed me at this time of pandemic (in a positive sense of course) It is impossible to test here at your own request, but at the discretion of the doctor ... politicians of course always take precedence ... all in all, I'm sick of being an experimental rabbit.
Oh by the way, glad to see you here active 
1 person likes this
@Torunn (8607)
• Norway
25 Apr 20
Yes, good to see you again!
I'm highly annoyed at a lot of things in Norway right now, but I've got to admit, it's not really a crisis here. Slightly worried about our neighbours in Sweden, but the rest of the Nordic countries seem to be doing fine.
We've had some politicians with corona, most of the them in the department for health.
How is the situation in Serbia? We get news from the UK, Spain and Italy, but not much from the middle and the east of Europe.
1 person likes this
@LowRiderX (22903)
• Serbia
25 Apr 20
@Torunn Oh don't be, you wouldn't believe what kind of countries there are, you would be shocked ... Norway believe there should be an example for others, there are a couple more countries.
Same is here... it seems everywhere is the same or at least similar situacion..
We are the most rigorous quarantine country, as the internet writes and tells on TV, no country loves its citizens like our president us 
loves us so much that every weekend increases quarantine...
People are here just mad...a lot mad
loves us so much that every weekend increases quarantine...
People are here just mad...a lot mad1 person likes this
@LowRiderX (22903)
• Serbia
25 Apr 20
@Torunn But it all makes sense to me, there are also abusive truths, but it is small unlike what is being done in other countries.
Yes, I understand that, even here are people mad...
Ooops I didnt know for that...I just, I thought about what I read in several different places, and I got the impression that you are a perfect country...
There are imperfections I believe, but somehow I still love Norway!
1 person likes this
@snowy22315 (182193)
• United States
29 Nov 20
Well six month laters I guess we are in a bette r place with all that.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (20046)
• United States
28 Apr 20
We aren't testing alot of people yet. I read that a group of people are giving free tests to the black community here this week.
1 person likes this
@Torunn (8607)
• Norway
19 May 20
They have started testing everyone with symptoms who ask for a test now. It takes about a day before you get the answer, some times half a day. It's good, cause that means that if you feel sick you can find out if you have a cold or a virus and it won't be so many in quarantine.
1 person likes this
@almostoveryou (4805)
• Philippines
25 Apr 20
Good to know about the developments in your country. My country has developed its own testing kit and it's now being reproduced to enable mass testing. We have actually started testing more probable cases and this is why our numbers have gone up.
1 person likes this
@Torunn (8607)
• Norway
25 Apr 20
@almostoveryou Yes, trials are going on here too.
I don't think it's any local medicine they try, but the university hospitals are a part of the program that tests medicine made for other viruses. I'm optimistic, not for a cure but for something that at least'll make it easier to get rid off.
1 person likes this
@almostoveryou (4805)
• Philippines
25 Apr 20
@Torunn Science for good. It's also good to note that some countries are looking at locally grown plants as possible cure for COVID. Here in the Philippines, for example, chemists are looking into virgin coconut oil.
1 person likes this
@happylife1 (13404)
• Karachi, Pakistan
13 Sep 20
yes no random test are being carried out
1 person likes this
@crossbones27 (49723)
• Mojave, California
6 Dec 20
I actually have no clue so many people here and they so weird about stuff like that. It makes you think you to poor to be even tested. 
