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Coronavirus tests ramped up to 800 a day for Northern Ireland as part of battle to tackle 'surge' in cases

Tino Ablacley, a bio-medical scientist, in the Belfast laboratory where coronavirus testing is being carried out for Northern Ireland. Testing is to be dramatically increased. Picture by Hugh Russell
Tino Ablacley, a bio-medical scientist, in the Belfast laboratory where coronavirus testing is being carried out for Northern Ireland. Testing is to be dramatically increased. Picture by Hugh Russell Tino Ablacley, a bio-medical scientist, in the Belfast laboratory where coronavirus testing is being carried out for Northern Ireland. Testing is to be dramatically increased. Picture by Hugh Russell

CORONAVIRUS testing is being dramatically ramped over in Northern Ireland to allow for swabbing of 800 people a day - with NHS frontline workers among those targeted.

Health minister Robin Swann announced the move as part of "surge plans" to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 and allow staff to deliver "vital" services.

It was also confirmed that 850 final year nurses and midwifery students are to be drafted into the health service over the next 10 to 14 days.

The plans will run to mid-April and will include redeploying final-year medical students from Queen's University Belfast as well as encouraging recently retired healthcare staff to return to work as part of a major recruitment drive.

All health trusts have identified specific wards to provide extra bed capacity for coronavirus patients and some 40 additional mechanical ventilators have been ordered, taking the total available to 179 by the end of this this month.

Non-urgent operations are to be scaled down in order to prioritise essential services and free up capacity across the system.

In a written statement to the Assembly, Mr Swann said the health service will "fast become unrecognisable".

"Changes that would have seemed unthinkable weeks ago will become the new norm. Decisions that would previously have taken months or even years will be taken in hours," he said.

The measures were unveiled yesterday afternoon, just hours after the first death of a patient with Covid-19 was confirmed in the north.

The elderly patient died in hospital in the greater Belfast area and had an underlying health condition.

Mr Swann as well as First Minister Arlene Foster and Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill expressed sadness at the passing.

A total of 77 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in the north. In the Republic, 557 people have tested positive and a third person died yesterday.

Only a fortnight ago, as little as 30 daily samples were being assessed in the main Belfast laboratory testing centre based at the Royal Victoria Hosptial, with plans to increase capacity to "hundreds".

However, mounting pressure from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and leading experts on the need for mass testing led the UK to change its position in tackling the global pandemic following successes in China and South Korea where "super labs" were set up.

It is not clear how the north will increase its capacity, with the leading consultant virologist who heads up the Belfast laboratory, Dr Conall McCaughey, telling The Irish News earlier this month that it can take up to six months to train biomedical scientists to carry out the work.

Testing here is not carried out a 24 hour basis but there were suggestions yesterday that private sector resources and equipment may be brought in to help NHS experts.

Non-urgent operations are to be scaled down in order to prioritise essential services and free up capacity across the system.

Mr Swann stressed the importance of following public health advice in trying to prevent a spike in cases.

"If social distancing and other measures are implemented by the population, with a combined effect they could reduce the peak by some 50 per ent and reduce deaths by up to a third," he said.

"Planning assumptions also indicate that eight per cent of infected people will require hospitalisation, 0.7 per cent will require critical care, and one per cent will die – although these figures will vary highly depending on age and other health factors.

"There is no doubt that these measures come at a cost. They will be difficult for people to stick to. They will have significant social and economic impacts. But they will save lives."

Mr Swann also issued a thank you to staff in the health and social care sector for their work so far.

"I am proud of you and I commit to giving you my full support in the days and months ahead," he said.

"The words 'thank you' seem woefully inadequate in the circumstances but they still need to be said - on behalf of everyone across our society."