NHS Test & Trace misses target, reaching 67% of Covid contacts

THE NHS Test and Trace system in Portsmouth is ahead of the national trend but still falling short of targets as it reaches just 67 per cent of Covid patient contacts.

Data from the Department of Health and Social Care shows that 98 people who tested positive for the virus in Portsmouth were transferred to the Test and Trace service between May 28 and September 9.

A further 206 close contacts of these patients were identified in this way in the city – also referred to as ‘non-complex’ cases, meaning they could be dealt with through a call centre or online.

But figures reveal that just 67 per cent of those contacts were reached by contact tracers, meaning 69 people could not be reached or did not acknowledge that they also needed to self-isolate, with the lack of communication due to either missing contact details or no response to text, email, or call reminders.

More recent data across the city shows higher percentages of contacts have been successfully reached, according to Helen Atkinson, director of public health at Portsmouth City Council. It was announced in midAugust that the national NHS test and trace service would start working more closely with local councils’ public health teams.

She said: ‘The decision to assign NHS Test and Trace contact teams locally is a sensible one. We've always worked closely with our local Public Health England Health Protection Team on outbreaks, which we've continued during this pandemic.

‘Our local tracing team will build on this strong partnership working and enable us to best use our local knowledge to assist with reaching those who test positive and their close contacts .

‘A well-developed Test and Trace system is crucial to reducing the spread of Covid-19.’

Across Hampshire, 71 per cent of Covid patient contacts were reached by contact tracers meaning 673 people did not acknowledge they also needed to selfisolate.

Across England 64 per cent of non-complex close contacts were reached and told to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace in the latest week to September 9.

This falls ‘ well short’ of SAGE's 80 per cent target, according to Saffron Cordery, chief executive of NHS Providers.

She said: ‘ Trust leaders are increasingly concerned with the current testing shortages impacting on NHS service recovery and winter preparations due to staff and their family members being unable to access a test.’

Baroness Dido Harding, who heads the NHS Test and Trace service, admitted last week that demand for tests was outstripping capacity but denied claims that the system was ‘failing’.