WELL PHARMACY NOW STOCKING RAPID COVID-19 TEST KITS

From Friday 9th April, 540 Well Pharmacy branches across England will be offering the new NHS Pharmacy Collect service to help us move safely out of lockdown.

People without symptoms are able to visit their local Well pharmacy and collect a box of seven rapid coronavirus test kits to use twice a week at home, free of charge, and then enter their results on the NHS Test and Trace portal.

The new NHS Pharmacy Collect service is part of the pandemic recovery, making access to lateral flow devices more readily available to identify COVID-positive cases in the community and break the chain of transmission.

Janice Perkins, Pharmacy Superintendent for Well Pharmacy, said:

“Community pharmacy continues to play a pivotal role in the fight against COVID-19. Alongside the vaccine rollout, regular testing has an important role to help us move safely out of lockdown.

“Around 1 in 3 people who have COVID-19 show no symptoms, the new NHS Pharmacy Collect service in England will help find cases and break the chain of transmission helping protect everyone in the local community.

“We urge everyone to take up the offer of these free rapid tests – they are quick and easy to carry out in your own home.”

Anyone can request a box of test kits from the pharmacy counter. Use the pharmacy finder to locate your local Well pharmacy: https://finder.well.co.uk/

Lateral Flow Test Top Tips

Before you start, make sure you have enough tests for everyone in your bubble

Remember basic hygiene

Wash your hands and clean the surface you're going to use (make sure the surface is flat).

Read the instructions 

Lateral flow tests might be coming from different manufacturers so it's always best to read the instructions before you start. Most test kits come with a testing device, a swab, a tube with some solution, a plastic tube for you to put the solution in, a test tube holder and a waste bag

Make sure you have everything you need 

Items you'll want to have to hand include a watch so you can time yourself (it will take 15-30 minutes for the result to show), a mirror so you can see your tonsils, tissues so you can blow your nose and hand sanitiser.

If you have more than one child, consider writing their initials on the test

Ends

Editors notes

Well Pharmacy is the UK's largest independent pharmacy chain.