In Japan, people who think they might have been infected with the coronavirus are advised to go to a local public gym. There, a doctor determines if a test is necessary.
The old criteria advised that only people with a fever of 37. 5 degrees Celsius or higher persistent for four days should go to the gym. Experts said a quick temperature isn’t the only thing that determines whether a user seeks medical attention.
The new criteria do not specify an express temperature. Instead, they say other people “who have shortness of breath, severe fatigue, or a high fever” and “who have a cough, fever, and other mild symptoms without blood for 4 days or more” seek help.
The rules also note that symptoms may differ among Americans and that other people with severe symptoms seek immediate help.
Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko welcomed the changes, saying they would make testing easier and the government would maximize testing capacity.
The Ministry of Health says it has to conduct more than 17,000 tests per day, but the number of tests conducted is much lower, about 9,000 per day.
The government’s expert panel suggests that “overburdened local public fitness centers” and “shortages of masks and protective clothing used for testing” may be other reasons for the low number of tests. The panel says the government wants to improve the formula of the country’s gyms and supply good enough protective equipment.
But Nishimura Hidekazu, director of the Virus Research Center at Sendai Medical Center, says the new criteria will be useful.
“The new criteria will prevent doctors from neglecting patients with pneumonia that is not serious but can be,” Nishimura said.
He adds: “There is a risk that there will not be enough testing, especially in urban spaces such as Tokyo, where the number of infected people is high. This means that it is more mandatory than ever to determine which patients are hospitalized. those who want to get tested the most. “