Completed petition Age appropriate testing for Covid in Children

I would like the government to consider adopting a different method to testing children, an age appropriate PCR test nicknamed the lollipop test. All the children need to do is to suck on a cotton swab for about 30 seconds which is a much less distressing experience for them.

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I have found the testing of young children for COVID-19 a traumatic experience for both the child and the parent especially for younger children. This is only going to get worse with the flu and cold season upon us. Children who are prone to coughs end up regularly having to undergo the PCR swab test to be allowed back into school. The latter is a stressful experience, often distressing and as a parent the dilemma is whether to isolate your child even though they just have a cold merely to avoid testing. There is a better option which is used in Germany for children. It is an age appropriate PCR test nicknamed the 'lollipop' test and is highly reliable. I wonder why we do not offer this test in the UK and would ask the government to adopt it as a more humane way to test young children. We need to take the fear out of testing and now!

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