Number of samples tested drops with reported cases
Coimbatore: People have been cheering the gradual but sizeable drop in number of Covid-19 cases, but what they have not realized is that the number of samples being tested has also dropped.
Compared to July-mid, when the district was testing 3,500 to 4,200 samples a day, the district now tests 2,200 people a day.
However, health department officials say testing has been brought down based on the state government instructions to maintain a positivity rate of 5% to 10%.
Data with the health department shows that from August 1 to 5, 10,860 samples were collected showing an average of 2,172 samples a day. This is 50% of the 4,200 samples they were collecting a day in July-mid. “Sample collection began dropping from July 25 itself on the field to just a little over 2,000 samples a day. On some days, samples collected are as low as 1,800-odd,” said a health department source. In July, 72,345 people’s samples were collected, showing an average of 2,333 samples a day. “As the number of samples being collected began dropping, the number of positive cases also dropped,” he said.
Data with the health department shows that from August 1 to 5, 10,860 samples were collected showing an average of 2,172 samples a day. This is 50% of the 4,200 samples they were collecting a day in July-mid. “Sample collection began dropping from July 25 itself on the field to just a little over 2,000 samples a day. On some days, samples collected are as low as 1,800-odd,” said a health department source. In July, 72,345 people’s samples were collected, showing an average of 2,333 samples a day. “As the number of samples being collected began dropping, the number of positive cases also dropped,” he said.
The public health department says the possibility of missing out on cases, due to reduced testing, occurs only if the positivity rate is above 10%. “The state government, in a bid to ensure reagents are not being wasted and unnecessary tests are not conducted, has asked to maintain a positivity of 5% to 10%. When we were testing 4,000 samples a day, our positivity rate was 1% to 2%,” said deputy director, G Ramesh Kumar. “Now, after we reduced to 2,000 to 2,300 samples a day, our positivity rate in August so far has been 9%, which is recommended,” he said. In July, our positivity rate was 5.9%, he said. The district’s overall positivity rate is 3.4%.
Officials said that this was not because there was a shortage of the reagent required to run PCR tests. “We have adequate quantity of reagents in both ESI Hospital and CMCH to conduct how many ever PCR tests we are required to, but the idea is to stop wasting resources. We are now running tests for samples conducted in Karur, Dharmapuri, Theni and other districts,” said the deputy director.
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