Test and Trace miss a third of South Tyneside virus contacts

More than a third of people who have come into close contact with a coronavirus victim are not being reached by the test and trace system in South Tyneside
Test and Trace workersTest and Trace workers
Test and Trace workers

Data from the Department for Health and Social care shows 4,907 people who tested positive for Covid-19 in South Tyneside were transferred to the Test and Trace service between May 28 and November 25 – with 474 new cases referred in the last seven days of that period.

This led to 10,348 close contacts being identified over the period – those not managed by local health protection teams, which are dealt with through a call centre or online.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But just 63.5% of those were reached – meaning 3,781 people were not contacted or did not respond.

That was the highest proportion in the North East, where 60.6% of contacts were reached on average.

As of November 18, people under the age of 18 who have been in contact with someone who has tested positive for Covid-19 are no longer all being traced individually.

Instead, a parent or guardian in the household is asked to confirm they have told the child to self-isolate, and if they have done so the child is recorded as having been reached.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

This change means it is no longer possible to compare the proportion of contacts that have been reached each week.

Local health protection teams deal with cases linked to settings such as hospitals, schools and prisons.

The contact tracing rate, including these cases, was 72.5%.