intexasatthe moment

yes ,thanks muffins ,could ypu PM me the details ? And thanks Pugwash ,that all sounds sensible!

Does anyone have experience of this ?

Sue I had two texts from GTTS ( I'm an outpatient)and tried to contact them to say that I was already booked at Tessa Jowell .I don't have a smart phone but typed the link into my laptop browser but had no luck . When I got through on the phone they said they weren't able to delete people from their system and to ignore the texts

The asymptomatic testing is for anyone without symptoms whether ecv and shielding or not .Though someone who is shielding shouldn't be putting themselves at risk by going out and visiting the testing site .Guess a first appointment or similar might lessen risk .

Nigello ,I was making 2 different points ,very incoherently! 1 Here are the suggested priorities and 2 but there seems to be a scattergun approach which is prioritising numbers achieved over priorities followed .

I think a scatter gun approach is being used and that in the rush to get as many vaccinated as soon as possible priority by age/health/exposure is sometimes being overlooked . This extract suggests priority groups https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/950113/jcvi-advice-on-priority-groups-for-covid-19-vaccination-30-dec-2020-revised.pdf JCVI advises that the first priorities for the current COVID-19 vaccination programme should be the prevention of COVID-19 mortality and the protection of health and social care staff and systems. Secondary priorities could include vaccination of those at increased risk of hospitalisation and at increased risk of exposure, and to maintain resilience in essential public services. This document sets out a framework for refining future advice on a national COVID-19 vaccination strategy.

From a discussion with a healthy 72 year old - text from gp surgery asking to phone re vaccination ,phoned surgery . Slots all gone for this week but told to ring again on Friday . Suggestion was that this round of vaccinations being delivered from Damilola Centre and co ordination with GP surgeries making it difficult to precisely match invitations to appointments .

I think that when people are made aware of their less than desirable behaviour they will ,understandably ,bluster/prevaricate .Few will instantly acknowledge things . You have probably given them food for thought and i wouldn't assume that they'll just ignore what you've said .

My concern is that although I agree LF tests are better than nothing in some settings where successive tests are built in as part of the protocol ( eg in a care home/hospital/school ) I've seen nothing to suggest that this is the case in local authority testing centres . Extracts from BMJ article https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/01/12/covid-19-government-must-urgently-rethink-lateral-flow-test-roll-out/ "Mass testing may be helpful and necessary in certain circumstances if delivered to a high quality, but the Innova lateral flow test is not fit for this purpose. Studies have shown that in symptomless people it misses the SARS-CoV-2 virus in a substantial proportion. In the Liverpool pilot study, 60% (95% CI 48% to 71%) of infected symptomless people went undetected, including 33% (19% to 50%) of those with high viral loads who are at highest risk of infecting others. [1] Among students in Birmingham, only 3% (1% to 16%) of those who would have tested positive on PCR were detected. [2] The Government continues to claim that the test detects 77%?a figure from an unrealistic study using laboratory scientists and experienced nurses running tests on symptomatic people." "While repeated rolls of a dice will increase the chance of you finally getting the result you want, this is not how testing behaves. False negative results happen for a reason, such as the person having a lower viral load or difficulties in swabbing which tend to recur with subsequent tests, reducing the chances of a true positive result. Together these assumptions overestimate benefits and underestimate potential harms. This is no way to produce evidence to support a population wide national testing programme." "Low test accuracy would be less dangerous if people being tested and the public at large received accurate information about the risks and implications of a false negative result" I've already been told how a couple have had the Southwark LF test and are thrilled that they are now safe to go and hug people .

Farmers on Lordship Lane which I believe sells so many essentials that it's exempt from closure might have something . Maybe a loaf tin ? Or Dog Kennel Hill Sainsbury's have baking stuff .

Well yes ,aesthetically sometimes it looks ok .And I think if you have small children &/or dogs ,I can see the reasoning . But it still needs maintenance ,cleaning fox poo and pulling self seeded tiny plants ?

Iona -sympathies ,I don't think you're being oversensitive at all . It's one of those incidents where the description doesn't convey how upsetting it was ,a bit like trying to explain to someone the atmosphere in a dream! It's horrible to be sworn and shouted at . Good on you for getting out and getting some exercise .

BMJ article re accuracy https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/01/12/covid-19-government-must-urgently-rethink-lateral-flow-test-roll-out/

That's my concern as well Sally .People will regard the LF test as proof that they do not have the virus . It's not accurate enough and there will be false negatives .

thank you LJ ,I just needed to be patient! I don't suppose anyone knows whether ,in view of the accuracy rate of the LF tests ,the protocol is to offer succesive tests ? I think I've heard that where a person tests positive with a LF tests they are then asked to take a PCR test,so I guess that would weed out false positives .But I wonder about false negatives .

"I took Pugwash's post as meaning she had sent a card from ED to someone also in ED" doh! of course you're right Sue . My brain doesn't seem to work very well these days .

Since restarting and updating I've lost this v handy shortcut whereby highlighted text could be quickly searched for . Can anyone help me to restore it ?

My impression was that outgoing mail was unaffected ,that the problem was with delivery .But Pugwash's post suggests otherwise . Kid -how would it help knowing which roads are affected ? And as an aside I believe you're near me ( I'm in Barry Rd ) as ,if I remember correctly ,I once picked up a nice wooden shelving unit from you .

I was just about to start a thread asking the same thing . There seems to be talk of asymptomatic testing - generally with front line workers having priority -spreading across London . I can't see from looking at Southwark's on line stuff that there is even mention of locations offering symptomatic testing .Because they don't want people turning up hoping for a test without going through the national testing procedure ?

I wonder what it's like for those on the ground delivering the post .Presumably they have a round to complete but are now delivering large bundles -Penguin's 26 ,my more modest 13 - instead of the usual 2 or 3 per household .So they must have huge loads to lug around . Or do they grab a few large bundles of backlog each day to mix in with the "daily" items ? I find myself strangely fascinated by how it ( isn't) working .Maybe there are stashes of backlog ,sorted into streets ,that post deliverers can ( if they fancy ? ) decide to access and randomly deliver ? But ,in any case ,What can we can do to cheer the poor beleaguered post men and women up ?

Oh .our Christmas cards are starting to arrive now - in batches .No sign of a parcel that was expected on 17 Dec .

Following on from the DPD delivery scam I'm guessing that this is not legit? No "you were out card "left .And there's always someone in now . ?3.00 requested . I've reported it as a possible scam to Royal Mail . "Due to a lack of complete address information, we have been unable to deliver your parcel number : 252275419876925 We require additional details to attempt re-delivery of this parcel, as the address provided appears to be incomplete. Please provide the complete information for this address to attempt redelivery. Currently, your parcel is being stored in our local depot."

I wonder what the value of them is to the charity ?