Ireland’s testing and tracing system for Covid-19 has been slowed by a range of technical issues, including data entry errors, a lack of automation and systems that cannot interact with each other. These issues, including the absence of unique patient identifiers and a system for laboratory information management, have pushed the timeframe for testing and tracing beyond expert recommendations. The median time between swabbing and contact tracing starting, he said, was at five days and coming down. Elsewhere, a medium-term plan for a testing and contact tracing system is expected to cost about €500 million. The Department of Health said on Tuesday night the HSE’s testing plan has been agreed by its board and implementation was under way.

Source: The Irish Times May 12, 2020 23:03 UTC