Latest bottleneck for testing:
1) shortage of lab materials
2) shortage of personal protective equipment for staff collecting patient samples: nbcnews.com/health/health-…
1) shortage of lab materials
2) shortage of personal protective equipment for staff collecting patient samples: nbcnews.com/health/health-…
We're running short on “swabs, N95 respirators, viral transport media, masks, [and] gloves,” American Clinical Laboratories Association told @strickdc.
.@GovLarryHogan just told @KatyTurNBC that testing is no longer a top priority: "We've moved from testing, quite frankly, to other things... the hospitals are going to be overwhelmed and not able to do the tests...how do we ramp up hospital capacity?"
By all estimates, it will take *weeks* for many labs to ramp up to do large-scale testing. We don't have that kind of time—hospitals are already bracing their ICUs to be overwhelmed. That's the next looming threat.
Urgent care clinics are trying to convey the same message to patients: Don't ask us for tests. We need to prioritize the most vulnerable.
Basically, the emerging consensus seems to be:
Self-quarantine if you suspect you're infected.
Recuperate at home if you can.
Consult doctor if really sick but don't expect to be tested.
Go to the ER/hospital as a last resort to avoid taking up increasingly scarce resources.
Self-quarantine if you suspect you're infected.
Recuperate at home if you can.
Consult doctor if really sick but don't expect to be tested.
Go to the ER/hospital as a last resort to avoid taking up increasingly scarce resources.
