‘I was shocked’: Fallout from Covid testing mix-up grows

The “dangerous” effects of the testing bungle at Sydney’s St Vincent’s Hospital are beginning to make their way through the community.

The effects of the testing bungle at Sydney’s St Vincent’s Hospital are beginning to make their way through the community, after the hospital announced it delivered incorrect results to over 1,400 people over the Christmas break.

Bondi resident Lucy Rosenberg was one of the people involved in the mix-up, revealing how the ordeal had played out on Tuesday night’s edition of The Project.

“Yeah. So it‘s an emotional and physical rollercoaster, for sure. I definitely got sick, and it was all the symptoms from Covid,” she said.

“It was like textbook. And then I got tested four days later, I got the results back, and they came back as negative. I was shocked. And then, nine hours later, I got a text message saying, “Please disregard – you are actually a positive.’

“I called my mum frantically. I called her because I was like, ‘What do I do? I know I’m clearly sick and I’ve got something, and I know it’s Covid. What do I do? Because I don’t want to leave.’ I was just kind of frantically trying to figure out what to do.”

Ms Rosenberg said she believed the mix-up was “pretty dangerous” and could be a “life or death situation” for some involved.

She said she was “still sick” but “definitely feeling better”, describing her symptoms as an “annoying cold and cough”.

“It’s pretty dangerous,” she said.

“Because I think at this time of year as well, when people are going out and seeing family and elderly and, you know, this is a life-and-death situation. And, yes, 90 per cent of Australia is double-vaxxed but, at the same time, people are still getting sick, and it’s still a life-and-death virus.”

The pathology service revealed on Monday afternoon that the group of people, tested on December 22, 23 and 24, were prematurely sent an SMS advising them their test was negative when their true result had not yet been determined.

Lucy Rosenberg is one of the people involved in the mix-up.

It comes after 400 people were falsely told on Sunday that they had tested negative.

In a further statement on Tuesday, SydPath said the bungle was caused by a “simple data processing error” after the system moved from an automated to a manual system.

“In order to contend with the major increase in volume of tests SydPath had recently moved from an automated system to a manual system to expedite the release of negative test results,” the statement said.

“Unfortunately, during this manual process a simple data processing error was made which led to the wrong test results being released.

“We have reverted to our automated systems to ensure this type of error cannot happen again.”

Sydney clinics have seen lines to the horizon as panicked residents rush for swabs this holiday season.

SydPath also confirmed “as of last night, all of these people received their accurate test results, 486 of whom were confirmed as being Covid positive”, which amounts to more than half.

It added the number of Covid tests it processed would be reduced.

“This event has come at a time of unprecedented Covid-testing activity,” SydPath said.

“In order to maintain the quality of our testing, we are reducing the number of Covid tests we process to ensure the volume remains within our capacity.

“A sizeable proportion of SydPath’s recent testing has involved those requiring a test for travel purposes. Due to overwhelming demand we advise that we must prioritise testing for those who need it most.”

Nearly 500 more people have been incorrectly told they do not have Covid. The results are from the same Sydney testing centre that incorrectly sent out nearly 1,400 'negative' results over the Christmas break.#TheProjectTVpic.twitter.com/BEsUDdenSr

— The Project (@theprojecttv) December 28, 2021

Originally published as ‘I was shocked’: Fallout from Covid testing mix-up grows