Continuing his strong criticism of the government concerning the free availability of rapid self test from the pharmacies but also the attempt to once again shift the responsibility to the citizens is given by the Pharmaceutical Association of Athens.
In today's announcement, and following the remarks of the President of the Association, Kostas Lourantos, the pharmacists express their strong disagreement and raise a number of safety concerns about the use of self-testing. Among other things, they warn that «this procedure, being completely unscientific, can be anything from useless to potentially dangerous».
They also comment that «it is clear that the government is trying to shift responsibility to the citizens even for the recording of test results» and talk about an attempt to slander pharmacists with cheap arguments about alleged fee claims, trying to achieve a social automatism at their expense, we respond with our actions».
In detail, the announcement of the Athens Association is as follows:
«The pharmacists of Attica declare their complete disagreement with the procedure announced by the government for the administration of self-tests to citizens through pharmacies. This procedure, being completely unscientific, may prove to be from useless to potentially dangerous. There is no plan to record test results in a database.
If there is no real-time tracking and recording it is a wonder why these self-tests are being done. All those 40 million tests used monthly, which will be bio-loaded and discarded? In common garbage cans? There is no provision. Have those responsible considered the risk of spreading the virus and the possibility of pharmacists and workers inside pharmacies becoming ill to the extent that the necessary facilities for such procedures are not in place?;
Just one example: for years now we have been participating in flu vaccination without any obligation, covering the gaps in the country's primary health care with the only reward being the smiles and thanks of our vaccinated citizens. This year alone, the country's pharmacies carried out around 4 million vaccinations, with all the risks this entailed for the health of the vaccinated and their families.
So let the government drop the misguided fireworks about conducting self-tests at home or in pharmacies. Let it stop the over-promotion of misplaced statements and the media's smear campaign against the sector and let it try to organise what it should have done a long time ago: carry out tests on the population in a proper and scientifically designed way and not for communication purposes alone. From what the latest evidence shows us, it is its policy so far in the evolution of the pandemic that has brought us to this nightmare result.».
Confusion with the recording of the self-test
The Minister of Digital Governance, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, after having first reversed the announcements of Akis Skertzos, who stated that the result of self testing will not be declared in any registry and no platform, saying that a platform will be created in which positive tests will be declared, today raised new questions and increased concerns about government plans and epidemiological surveillance.
Speaking to Mega, Pierrakakis said that the declaration of the results of the self-tests will be voluntary. «There is no obligation to declare it. We believe in individual responsibility. Every fellow citizen would be well advised to declare it,» he said, adding that the self-tests will start being administered in early April.
