Hypothetical positive PCR test question

[hugolars]

Hello,

If one go to a private clinic and make a PCR test and test positive what does the clinic do besides giving the result?
Do they have any obligations to report to authorities to hunt one down like a dog and lock in an expensive "hospital", like the Israeli guy?

I know for a fact thai people making a positive antigen test, go to a hospital for PCR, queening for hours only to be sent back home because they cant serve everyone.

Thanks,

[falang07]

Since the PCR tests can detect anything as Covid depending on the cycle treshold value, I would not waste my time and resources. If you feel sick, stay at home. If you feel healthy, be happy and enjoy your life. 

[richard_smith237]

If you have been in a busy area or feel you may have been exposed etc... or if you have the ‘snivels’ then do an antigen test / lateral flow test (ATK) at home.... 

 

If you are positive, remain at home and isolate. 

If not, continue on

 

If you develop symptoms and want hospitial treatment, pursue that option. 

 

IF your question is simply about the obligations of a ‘clinic’ to report a positive PCR test I suspect mileage may vary depending on the clinic itself. 

 

 

[Lacessit]

AFAIK every medical clinic in Thailand is obliged to report a COVID-positive patient, whether they actually do is another question.

[pacovl46]

The Israeli guy got DESERVEDLY “hunted down like a dog” because he ESCAPED FROM QUARANTINE!!! Just wanted to clarify that! 

[Sheryl]

3 hours ago, Lacessit said:

AFAIK every medical clinic in Thailand is obliged to report a COVID-positive patient, whether they actually do is another question.

Correct.

 

Unless you need this for travel, do not get a PCR. Just buy a home test kit

 

(Unless seriously ill - in that case of course go to a hospital)

[Sheryl]

4 hours ago, falang07 said:

Since the PCR tests can detect anything as Covid depending on the cycle treshold value, I would not waste my time and resources. If you feel sick, stay at home. If you feel healthy, be happy and enjoy your life. 

PCR tests cannot "detect anything as COVID", that is one of the myths perpetuated by various ill-informed websites that has taken on a life of its own.

 

PCR is simply an amplification technique. It can't find something that is not there. It just   makes it possible to detect something that is there is only minute quantities.

 

The main problem is that it only detects viral genetic material, it does not distinguish live virus from dead viral fragments. This can be an issue for people i who had a prior COVID infection as bits of dead viral material may remain in the body for a few months..

[hugolars]

2 hours ago, pacovl46 said:

The Israeli guy got DESERVEDLY “hunted down like a dog” because he ESCAPED FROM QUARANTINE!!! Just wanted to clarify that! 

Are you serious?

[MrJ2U]

7 hours ago, falang07 said:

Since the PCR tests can detect anything as Covid depending on the cycle treshold value, I would not waste my time and resources. If you feel sick, stay at home. If you feel healthy, be happy and enjoy your life. 

...and get duped into staying at a hospital incurring ridiculously high priced substandard hospital care.

 

 

 

[falang07]

19 hours ago, Sheryl said:

PCR tests cannot "detect anything as COVID", that is one of the myths perpetuated by various ill-informed websites that has taken on a life of its own.

 

PCR is simply an amplification technique. It can't find something that is not there. It just   makes it possible to detect something that is there is only minute quantities.

 

The main problem is that it only detects viral genetic material, it does not distinguish live virus from dead viral fragments. This can be an issue for people i who had a prior COVID infection as bits of dead viral material may remain in the body for a few months..

as I have stated, it is "depending on the cycle treshold value". If you set it ridiculously high, it will detect covid in Papaya, too. Trust me.

 

[The Hammer2021]

19 hours ago, Sheryl said:

PCR tests cannot "detect anything as COVID", that is one of the myths perpetuated by various ill-informed websites that has taken on a life of its own.

 

PCR is simply an amplification technique. It can't find something that is not there. It just   makes it possible to detect something that is there is only minute quantities.

 

The main problem is that it only detects viral genetic material, it does not distinguish live virus from dead viral fragments. This can be an issue for people i who had a prior COVID infection as bits of dead viral material may remain in the body for a few months..

Thank you. I have just started  a new subject about this. How does someone testing positive  because of dead genetic  material  ever get home?

[NancyL]

I know several foreigners in Chiang Mai who tested positive at private hospitals in the past few days with mild symptoms.  They were not "hunted down like dogs", but rather were sent home with medications for their symptoms and told to self-isolate for 10 days and if they had been symptom-free for at least 5 days to take an at-home ATK test and if it was negative they were "good to go".

 

Within 24 hours they were contacted by phone from someone from the Health Dept to interview them about their movements, contacts, etc and they were encouraged to make contact with people they'd socialized with themselves.  It all seems very reasonable.

[NancyL]

16 minutes ago, falang07 said:

as I have stated, it is "depending on the cycle treshold value". If you set it ridiculously high, it will detect covid in Papaya, too. Trust me.

 

A simple Google fact-check busts this myth  https://www.reuters.com/article/factcheck-covid-lfd-idUSL1N2OS2CH

[richard_smith237]

1 minute ago, The Hammer2021 said:

Thank you. I have just started  a new subject about this. How does someone testing positive  because of the dead genetic  material  ever get home?

As I understand it, while possible, this is this is very rare. 

 

I know plenty of business owners who have had staff test positive for Covid-19. After a period of isolation the staff have take a PCR test before being permitted to return to work. 

 

This is not an official statistic, just information provided in discussion with a couple of friends / acquaintances - none of them have had an employee test positive after their isolation period.

 

 

 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

8 minutes ago, NancyL said:

I know several foreigners in Chiang Mai who tested positive at private hospitals in the past few days with mild symptoms.  They were not "hunted down like dogs", but rather were sent home with medications for their symptoms and told to self-isolate for 10 days and if they had been symptom-free for at least 5 days to take an at-home ATK test and if it was negative they were "good to go".

 

Within 24 hours they were contacted by phone from someone from the Health Dept to interview them about their movements, contacts, etc and they were encouraged to make contact with people they'd socialized with themselves.  It all seems very reasonable.

I suspect this factual information will not be shared as often as ‘hunted like dogs’ comment.... 

 

On forums like this there is always greater scope for the spread of ‘outrage’ amongst the ‘barstoollers’ !!! 

 

 

 

Edited January 6, 2022 by richard_smith237

[Sheryl]

21 minutes ago, The Hammer2021 said:

Thank you. I have just started  a new subject about this. How does someone testing positive  because of dead genetic  material  ever get home?

They eventually test negative. That's the only way anyone with an initially positive COVID test gets home.

[Sheryl]

20 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Meanwhile, I know foreigners who have tested PCR positive, after a couple of days observation in hospital they have been sent home to isolate ( with a ‘care package’ ) - this is in Bangkok. 

 

 

Thus: Communication may be key. If the hospital / authorities ‘assume’ they are tourists, of course, they are not going to be sent anywhere. However, IF as a foreigner you can show that you have a home in which to self isolate, then I imagine we’d get treated as a Thai would.

 

 

Like everything else in Thailand, government guidelines are vaguely worded, poorly disseminated and open to varied interpretations, and different places do different things.

 

Indeed there is a  perception that foreigners are harder to track/more likely to vanish,   and that in turn does stem from the fact that policy makers/senior health officials tend to equate foreigner with tourists/travellers. And there have been problems tracking COVID+ foreigners.

 

What a specific health department will do, will vary greatly by place and what they understand the rules to be. One can certainly negotiate for home isolation but success cannot be guaranteed and mileage will vary.

 

It will also likely change over time.

 

The biggest risk (in terms of incarceration) seems to be when newly arrived from abroad. Pretty much everyone gets rushed off to hospital, though there are some reports of asymptomatic people later being allowed to more to a "hospitel".

[Rimmer]

An unattributed scaremongering claim has been removed also replies

[Sheryl]

42 minutes ago, falang07 said:

as I have stated, it is "depending on the cycle treshold value". If you set it ridiculously high, it will detect covid in Papaya, too. Trust me.

 

It will not, and cannot. Impossible.

 

The threshold value will affect how small a quantity can be detected. It cannot detect something that is not present at all.

 

 Well under 1% of new arrivals are testing positive (0.1 - 0.3%, to be exact) . Hardly consistent with the idea that there is something in the testing that is yielding an exaggerated number of  positive results.

[The Hammer2021]

24 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

They eventually test negative. That's the only way anyone with an initially positive COVID test gets home.

But with a PCR Test that could be three months!

[richard_smith237]

1 minute ago, The Hammer2021 said:

27 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

They eventually test negative. That's the only way anyone with an initially positive COVID test gets home.

But with a PCR Test that could be three months!

It ‘could’ be much longer than that.... 

 

But why ‘sweat’ the hypothetical extremes ??

 

In the vast majority of cases a negative PCR test is returned within a week or two of initially testing positive. 

 

 

 

[The Hammer2021]

11 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

It ‘could’ be much longer than that.... 

 

But why ‘sweat’ the hypothetical extremes ??

 

In the vast majority of cases a negative PCR test is returned within a week or two of initially testing positive. 

 

 

 

But it's too late if someone  has booked a flight and 3 months is the NHS recommended time for waiting  for a clear test after recommended recovering  from covid?

Edited January 6, 2022 by The Hammer2021

[richard_smith237]

2 minutes ago, The Hammer2021 said:

But it's too late if someone  has booked a flight

Obviously, if someone tests positive they will have to re-book their flight. 

 

I think most airlines (definitely Emirates / Qatar) are offering risk free bookings which include free date change and free cancellation for any reason. 

Other airlines are offering free date change with proof of a positive test. 

 

 

BUT, IF in the rare occurrence of someone testing PCR positive 3 months after suffering from Covid-19 then ultimately there are in a very sticky spot. 

 

 

 

 

 

[LoveThai94]

37 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

They eventually test negative. That's the only way anyone with an initially positive COVID test gets home.

Based off the US attestation form you either provide a negative test or doctor's note that you recovered from Covid.

I don't think airlines are going to board anyone with a positive test, so you are stuck until that negative test is present at your own expense.

[The Hammer2021]

19 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Obviously, if someone tests positive they will have to re-book their flight. 

 

I think most airlines (definitely Emirates / Qatar) are offering risk free bookings which include free date change and free cancellation for any reason. 

Other airlines are offering free date change with proof of a positive test. 

 

 

BUT, IF in the rare occurrence of someone testing PCR positive 3 months after suffering from Covid-19 then ultimately there are in a very sticky spot. 

 

 

 

 

 

Not after 3 months..up to three months! So which airlines  don't require  PCR tests? Who has resources to waiting an extra 2 months?

Edited January 6, 2022 by The Hammer2021

[richard_smith237]

1 minute ago, The Hammer2021 said:

19 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

BUT, IF in the rare occurrence of someone testing PCR positive 3 months after suffering from Covid-19 then ultimately there are in a very sticky spot.

Not after 3 months..up to threw months!

 

Why the hang up about 3 months.....     Testing PCR Positive a few weeks after ‘having Covid-19’ is possible, its also possible after 2 months or even after 3 months - but it is very rare. 

 

The timing is irrelevant, its inconvenient if someone wishes to travel and needs a negative PCR certificate. 

[The Hammer2021]

1 minute ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

Why the hang up about 3 months.....     Testing PCR Positive a few weeks after ‘having Covid-19’ is possible, its also possible after 2 months or even after 3 months - but it is very rare. 

 

The timing is irrelevant, its inconvenient if someone wishes to travel and needs a negative PCR certificate. 

I am talking about people here either visiting or living here or on holiday trying to get home. A form of false positive  that can last up  to three  months could be disastrous. What don't  you understand?

[The Hammer2021]

24 minutes ago, LoveThai94 said:

Based off the US attestation form you either provide a negative test or doctor's note that you recovered from Covid.

I don't think airlines are going to board anyone with a positive test, so you are stuck until that negative test is present at your own expense.

But hundreds of people could  be stuck!

[LoveThai94]

1 minute ago, The Hammer2021 said:

But hundreds of people could  be stuck!

Airline will follow the rules so they don't get stuck with you.

 

Believe it or not people get stuck almost every day traveling, weather, mechanical issues, staffing issues, etc.

 

[The Hammer2021]

22 hours ago, pacovl46 said:

The Israeli guy got DESERVEDLY “hunted down like a dog” because he ESCAPED FROM QUARANTINE!!! Just wanted to clarify that! 

How  are dogs hunted?