Testers brace for close contact spike as schools reopen

Niamh O'Beirne, HSE National Lead Test and Tracing, said children might have a stuffed nose or a cough, so they go forward for testing because they can’t be symptomatic in schools. Photo: Leah Farrell / Photocall Ireland

Testing sites are bracing for an increase in close contact numbers coming forward as the schools return since Covid-19 and other viruses are circulating.

Niamh O’Beirne, the HSE lead for testing and tracing, told the Irish Examiner that as schools open, there tends to be an increase in the numbers of people coming forward for testing.