a false alarm?

It's been a busy week kickstarting our new digital system to manage our patients remotely in dermatology. We seem to be ahead of the game through our pre-Covid experience with piloting the system in other ways, and with the post-Covid future inevitably going to see healthcare as well as many other industries and workplaces adopting remote and digital working for many, we are fortunate to have had the chance to learn it in a short time. So many things will change, we have to embrace whatever is to come in our new future. But it's also proving to be a lot more tiring working in this way, and staring at a screen for most of the day is a large part of it!

So I'm sure it's this that caused me to suddenly develop cold-like symptoms out of the blue before the weekend started..I could have called it hayfever on any other day, but I hadn't gone out, and it had rained all day! It was enough to see me to my bed, and hayfever doesn't do that to me.. The thermometer battery had run out, and as the symptoms continued on Saturday, I thought I should tell someone. I would NEVER report a simple cold...but with a global pandemic going on I want to be sure to do the right thing! I called occupational health at work and the doctor, kindly working at the weekend, took me through the list of symptoms, of which I had none, and reassured me that I was doing the right thing as I apologised profusely for reporting such pathetic symptoms! I had the all clear to work on Monday, as long as the symptoms didn't worsen, to wear a mask at work, and keep my distance..but no test was suggested. Then the Covid App which I had reported to sent me an email, signed off by Prof Tim Spector, my colleague's husband, inviting me to have a test..

I was confused! So with direct access to the man himself, I messaged her to ask him if I should do this, and in the name of the study, and a result in 24 hours, it was advised, in order to correlate any new symtoms with the virus-anything to help us work towards more knowledge in these muddy waters!

Unfortunately despite trying numerous times and being invited to attend what was my nearest test site in none other than Belfast...one opportunity eventually urned up locally, but by Sunday I still hadn't received confirmation from the gov-uk application, so no QR code, and no test pass for my drive through, and by then my symptoms had completely resolved whilst trying! But I still slept int the spare room to protect my husband as he has returned to his workplace, and I will still have to remain responsible when I go to work. As who really knows if any of these little symptoms mean covid-19, or was it just hayfever?!