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There is no excuse for having not properly planned a return-to-school covid testing regime that works.
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The Grade 1-aged little dude complained about a stomach ache at school today, which meant he was covid symptomatic and that teachers, admin staff, and parents should follow public health guidelines... in our case, those guidelines are published by Ottawa Public Health.
Basically, symptomatic kid gets isolated, sent home, and goes to get a covid test. Everyone
for negative result and a return to normal covidlife. BUT...
for negative result and a return to normal covidlife. BUT...
Testing is very clearly challenged by the laws of supply and demand. The wide-ranging symptoms of covid have *predictably* increased the demand on tests.
FWIW, every single selection on the Ottawa Public Health covid screener (except"no symptoms") results in "should get tested".
FWIW, every single selection on the Ottawa Public Health covid screener (except"no symptoms") results in "should get tested".
Getting a child a test in Ottawa should be done by pre-booking a test at the CHEO Assessment Centre. Bookings open at 8:30pm for a next day scheduled appt.
Alternatively you can roll dice for a walk-up that that should be be for contact-tracing or people who cannot book online.
Alternatively you can roll dice for a walk-up that that should be be for contact-tracing or people who cannot book online.
Unfortunately, every parent in the city with a kid sent home from school today because of a runny nose, stomach ache, headache, fever, chills, or any other number of wide-ranging symptoms is trying to book a *limited* number of testing spots tomorrow. There are LOTS of us.
Predictably, the demand for tests is skyrocketing while the supply of professionals able to administer tests and the ability for labs to process results is either not increasing or not increasing at the same rate.
This is very bad for people needing health care.
This is very bad for people needing health care.
When a large number of people try to book a limited number of testing spots at the EXACT same time a very predictable thing happens: the spots fill up very fast.
So fast that many of us trying to book a test never actually got into the online booking system because computers.
So fast that many of us trying to book a test never actually got into the online booking system because computers.
So, some of us get in and get to book a spot while others never get in and don't get to book a spot.
Except... some of us... like ME... actually get into the online system because refreshing browser fast and don't get a spot because computers. Let me explain.
Except... some of us... like ME... actually get into the online system because refreshing browser fast and don't get a spot because computers. Let me explain.
is what you get when you get in. Basically, a master-schedule where you can choose a slot that works for your schedule. Hah!
And, in theory, once you've chosen a slot that works for your schedule (hah!) you can confirm and schedule your child's test with the bright green schedule it button.
A well-designed system would reserve this spot for you for some predefined time until you've filled in all the information you need to fill-in and you've done the requisite steps necessary to convince the computer you are not a robot.
This system is not well designed.
In my case, I was able to get in and choose a spot, jump through all the information fill-ins and robot checking, and then I was presented with "error". The computer didn't care that I had chosen a spot, filled in all my information, made sure I was not a robot, because humans.
Unless my refresh-browser-fast power caused an undiscovered bug I suspect I got an "error" because the system-designed-by-humans doesn't reserve a spot until after you complete every single step. And when I finally got there, someone who can type faster than me beat me to it.
I spent the next 15 minutes trying every single spot presented to me because not a single spot was removed by the system. This was not amusing.
because not a single spot was removed by the system. This was not amusing.
Narrator: none of the spots were available because
I don't really want to blame anyone and while it appears I'm throwing shade at the local hospital IT staff I can only imagine they were bureaucratically constrained because of bureaucratic bureaucracies.
We ought to have known since at least late-spring that school-in-Fall was going to be a get-kids-tested gong show and we did not prepare for the testing surge in any adequate way.
And for that, I point fingers @fordnation because health care is a provincial responsibility.
And for that, I point fingers @fordnation because health care is a provincial responsibility.
If we wanted to design a pre-book testing system that worked we would at the very least make the system reserve a testing spot not-unlike-ticketing systems reserve seats for hockey games so that there wasn't a massive collision of people who all choose to book 11:10am.
Oh, and I probably shouldn't even be presented the choice of a timeslot because hahahaha you're not going to get it anyway. Just book me in for the NEXT AVAILABLE time slot.
In another universe, we probably would've spent the summer onboarding and training up folks in the art and science of covid testing so that we could match supply with demand.
In a completely different timeline, we might've even designed a school-based testing system by assigning testers to a collection of schools in a similar geographical area and relieved the community assessment centres for people that exhibit not a runny nose.
But we didn't because I don't know why and I am ridiculously frustrated and also I've got to get to bed so I can wake up ridiculously early so I can get a spot in a lineup for a walk-up appointment so I can get a negative test and little man can go back to school.
get a negative test and little man can go back to school.
