Low adherence to Test, Trace, and Isolate in UK

Levels of adherence to the UK's test, trace, and isolate system, and people's understanding of the main symptoms of COVID-19 are low, according to a new analysis involving researchers at UCL. The analysis, published in The BMJ , looked at online survey data and found that the lowest levels of adherence and understanding is found among men, younger age groups, people with a dependent child in the home, key workers, and those experiencing financial hardship. Researchers have warned that the effectiveness of the Test and Trace system, which should be a cornerstone of the UK's COVID-19 response, will be limited until support is given to enable these groups to increase adherence to testing and self-isolation. Over the course of the first 11 months of the pandemic, the team, led by NIHR Health Protection Research Unit (HPRU) in Emergency Preparedness and Response at King's College London and Public Health England researchers, used 74,697 responses from 53,880 participants aged 16 years and older living in the UK. Each participant was asked to identify the 'main' symptoms of COVID-19 - those that had been promoted to the public by government guidance (cough, high temperature or fever, and a loss of sense of smell or taste); answer questions about their actions (whether they stayed at home or requested a test) if they had experienced one of the main covid-19 symptoms; and say whether they intended to share details of close contacts if they were to develop symptoms and were asked to by NHS Test and Trace.