Shock way healthy Aussies being tested for Covid

Researchers are examining samples from Australian blood donors for evidence of Covid antibodies, providing a sample size of the population who have been either knowingly or unknowingly infected with the virus.Melbourne’s Doherty Institute said the Covid testing was known as a serosurvey, and aimed to estimate the extent of Omicron’s reach in the community, as well as the proportion of the population that had developed a level of immunity, via by infection or vaccination.The study harnesses resources from multiple research bodies, including the Doherty Institute, the Kirby Institute, Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, NSW Health Pathology, Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and the National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS).Director of NCIRS Professor Kristine Macartney said the samples were taken six weeks after the Omicron peak.“This, and regular surveys including another planned in children, will mean we will be able to track the impact of changes in the Covid response to better inform health policy,” Professor Macartney said.A lead investigator on the project from the Kirby Institute, Dr Dorothy Machalek, said relying on the reporting of positive tests underestimated the true number of Covid cases.“Particularly since high vaccine coverage has reduced the proportion of cases with symptoms – serosurveys help us understand by how much the numbers are underestimated,” Dr Machalek said.Blood donors make up around three per cent of the population.The news came as the Doherty Institute released a cryptic statement, saying it “does not condone the spread of disinformation nor attacks on individual staff members” and referring to its collection of serums.“Receiving serum samples from laboratories globally is routine practice of these public health initiatives,” the statement, released Friday night, said.“The Doherty Institute provides international advice and support to laboratories around the world for infectious diseases global preparedness and quality assurance.”The Doherty Institute has been contacted for comment.