Healthcare staff in Truro will be among the first in the region to be tested to see if they have had Covid-19.

The Peninsula Pathology Network (PPN) is now using NHS laboratories to provide antibody tests, which tell whether someone has had the virus that causes Covid-19 in the past, by analysing a blood sample.

The antibody testing programme will provide information on the prevalence of Covid-19 in the region, to help better understand how the disease spreads.

It will work alongside the swab testing programme, which confirms whether or not someone currently has the virus.

The Royal Cornwall Hospital at Treliske in Truro is one of five hospitals in the region where staff will now be tested.

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However, the PPN board, which was set up in December 2017, incorporating the five acute trusts across Cornwall, Devon and Isles of Scilly, together with representatives from clinical commissioning groups and those providing primary care - such as GP surgeries - said it was important to note that the science is currently uncertain.

A positive test result for antibodies only means than a person has had Covid-19 and there is currently no evidence to show that this offers them protective immunity to avoid future reinfection.

As a result, all social distancing and infection control measures should be maintained.

Around 1,000 tests are currently being carried out each day by the network, but it is hoped that up to 4,000 will take place every day across the peninsula by the end of June.

Testing for a limited number of patients has also begun, with more due to be tested as laboratory capacity increases.

As testing rolls out more widely to general population in the future, the science around the use of the test is expected to become further developed.

Ann James, chief executive officer of University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust and chair of the Peninsula Pathology Network, said: “This is another example of NHS partners across the peninsula working well together and this type of testing will begin to tell us how many people have had the virus in a given area.

"We know that not everyone who has had the virus was swabbed when they were symptomatic, so this data will be useful in shaping the future management of the pandemic.”

The other four hospitals involved in the testing are North Devon District Hospital in Barnstaple, Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Torbay Hospital and Derriford Hospital.

Across the five hospitals, the PPN has access to the two main types of antibody test that have been approved by the Government and validated by Public Health England.

Test results show either as positive, showing you have the antibodies and therefore have had the virus, or negative, which shows the opposite.

Allister Grant, medical director at Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust, said: “There is no evidence yet to suggest that those who have been proven to have had the virus are immune so staff and patients should continue to comply with social distancing measures, government and local guidelines.

“All infection prevention and control measures must continue to be in place irrespective of the presence of antibodies.”

Initially, at each acute hospital in Devon and Cornwall, local arrangements will be in place for staff to give a blood sample, which may involve drop-in sessions or drive-through opportunities.