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Date Published: 11/01/2022

ARCHIVED - What should I do if I test positive for Covid-19?

ARCHIVED ARTICLE -

These are the current guidelines for getting tested and isolating if you catch coronavirus

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - What should I do if I test positive for Covid-19?

With the rules changing what almost seems like daily, it’s hard to keep up with what you need to do if you test positive for Covid. Here we explain how to report a positive test and who you should tell, and how long you need to quarantine for if you have coronavirus, and what to do if you are a close contact of some with Covid.

There are two different protocols for what to do if you take a Covid rapid antigen test and prove positive for coronavirus, depending on whether you take the test at home or in a pharmacy.

Home Covid testing

According to health services, if you take the test at home and it comes out positive you should contact your doctor, preferably by telephone or online to avoid going out. If you have mild symptoms, your doctor will explain to you what you should do, which will most likely involve a 7-day quarantine.

If you have trouble breathing or more serious symptoms, your doctor may also give you an appointment to assess the seriousness of the situation.

Taking a Covid test in a pharmacy

If the test is done in the chemist’s itself, the health services will be notified automatically by the pharmacist. The result is then sent to the local health centre for the doctor to determine. In this case, it is not down to you to contact the health centre.

In any case, all those diagnosed with coronavirus by a pharmacy test will later have to undergo a confirmatory PCR test in the health centre (except in Madrid and the Balearic Islands). In the Region of Murcia, although the protocol dictates that it must be done after five days, the doctor can go ahead straightaway if they consider it convenient.

In either of these two cases, it is also a good idea to tell anyone you have been in close contact with, in a closed space without a facemask on, as they will need to get tested too.

How long am I supposed to self-isolate for?

People who have coronavirus no longer have to self-isolate for ten days, only seven. After the seven days are up, you don’t even need a negative PCR or rapid test in order to leave your house; the only requirement in order to leave self-quarantine is that you have no symptoms for at least three days before.

If you still have symptoms after a week at home, remain in self-isolation until you go for three days without any symptoms.

What should I do if I am a close contact of someone who tests positive?

The Spanish government and other countries have reduced quarantine times, mainly for two reasons: there is a large majority of mild or asymptomatic cases among immunised people, and the expansion of the incidence has meant people taking sick leave has risen dramatically, which threatens to put strain on essential services.

It is no longer necessary to self-isolate if you come into close contact with a person who tests positive but has been vaccinated, unless they are immunocompromised. You should, however, get tested with a rapid lateral flow test (not a PCR) to find out whether you are infected or not.

Even if you test negative, you are recommended to “limit yourself to only essential activities and reduce your social interactions as much as possible”.

If you are a close contact of an infected person who hasn’t been vaccinated, you should quarantine in your home for seven days.