Loading...
Self-testing as an invaluable tool in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic
Goggolidou, P Hodges-Mameletzis, I Purewal, S Karakoula, A Warr, T
Goggolidou, P
Hodges-Mameletzis, I
Purewal, S
Karakoula, A
Warr, T
Editors
Other contributors
Affiliation
Epub Date
Issue Date
2021-09-29
Submitted date
Alternative
Abstract
Objectives: The United Kingdom and a number of European Union countries are offering and distributing rapid antigen detection tests (RADTs) for self-test use to detect SARS-CoV-2. For instance, Greece, in the midst of its third wave of COVID-19, announced the provision of RADTs for self-testing through retail pharmacies. With the aim to determine the acceptability and feasibility of COVID-19 self-testing, we ran a cross-sectional survey on residents of Greece and Cyprus, aged over 18 years. Methods: An online survey using the JISC platform was distributed to 1000 individuals who completed the survey anonymously. Data was collated and analyzed for complete responses by chi-squared and logistic regression analyses. Results: A total of 248 complete responses were obtained, with balanced gender distribution and particular demographics representative of the 2 countries. The majority of participants (79%; n = 196) reported willingness to self-test and the remaining individuals reported no (10.5%; n = 26) or don’t know (10.5%; n = 26). Being a university graduate significantly predicted the likelihood of being willing to self-test (odds ratio [OR] = 3.455, P <.001). Pearson Chi-square test found significant differences between university graduates versus non-graduates on the type of COVID-19 test preferred (χ2 = 8.95, df = 3, P <.03); graduates were more likely to prefer saliva testing and less likely to prefer the finger prick test than non-graduates. Conclusions: Our survey data evidences the acceptability of home-based self-testing, with a preference for saliva as choice of biological material for sampling. A number of factors, such as accessible reporting, contact tracing infrastructures, central registration, and validation for the implementation of different RADTs need to be taken collectively into consideration before self-testing can be universally and reliably scaled up.
Citation
Goggolidou, P., Hodges-Mameletzis, I., Purewal, S., Karakoula, A. and Warr, T. (2021) Self-testing as an invaluable tool in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Primary Care and Community Health, 12, pp. 1-8.
Publisher
Research Unit
PubMed ID
34583571 (pubmed)
PubMed Central ID
Embedded videos
Additional Links
Type
Journal article
Language
en
Description
© 2021 The Authors. Published by SAGE. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence.
The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.1177/21501327211047782
Series/Report no.
ISSN
2150-1319
EISSN
2150-1327
ISBN
ISMN
Gov't Doc #
Sponsors
Rights
Licence for published version: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International