What Are Twice-Weekly Lateral Flow Tests?

Lateral flow tests are self-administered COVID-19 tests that can be done in private. Twice-weekly lateral flow tests are just lateral flow tests done twice a week to ensure that you are COVID-free for a specific week.

These tests are done through rapid-testing lateral flow kits that deliver results in a very short time. These kits enable you to ascertain if you have the COVID-19 virus in just 15 to 30 minutes.

How Twice-Weekly Lateral Flow Tests Work

To understand the twice-weekly lateral flow tests or LFT, we must understand how the lateral flow test works. Since the Pandemic, lateral flow tests have been synonymous with the detection of the COVID-19 virus in humans. But lateral flow tests have existed even before COVID-19. The most common lateral flow test kit we all know of is the pregnancy test.

A lateral flow system detects the presence or absence of a specific analyte. In the case of the twice-weekly lateral flow test kit, the COVID-19 virus.

A twice-weekly administered lateral flow test kit for COVID-19 is a standard precautionary process that will check if an individual carries the COVID-19 virus for that given week.

These tests are mostly implemented in workplaces that have a high risk of infection and to safeguard the workplace from new COVID-19 infections.

Travel abroad also encourages this practice.

Are Twice-Weekly Lateral Flow Tests Effective?

Rapid lateral flow tests for twice-weekly testing are effective but are only effective to an extent. A thrice, four-time, five, or six-time weekly lateral flow test will naturally be better in COVID-19 detection than a twice-weekly test, but this will be impractical. The twice-weekly lateral flow test still proves to be the most cost-effective and efficient lateral flow testing schedule.

A twice-weekly lateral flow test administration is the bare minimum precaution for situations that need a little extra care in not contracting and spreading the COVID-19 virus and its variants.

Industries that are encouraged to get twice-weekly have regular and daily face-to-face human interaction between co-workers and their public clientele.

People who work in the following industries are encouraged to take lateral flow tests twice weekly in private:

– hospitality

– construction and building

– domestic and other cleaning services,

– immigration and customs

– leisure and recreation

– legal services

– financial services

– security and safety management

– utilities and infrastructure management

– worship services

– funeral and wedding services

– community services

– retail

– public transport

– postal, delivery, and other freight services

– agriculture and fisheries

– wellbeing services

– cosmetics and beauty

– veterinary and animal husbandry

– daycare and children's social care

– education

Where to Get Twice-Weekly Lateral Flow Tests

Get them for free through gov.uk – As of October 24, 2022, the UK’s NHS or National Health Service says that you can get free COVID-19 lateral flow test kits if you are working at or an incoming patient of a hospital. You also get free COVID-19 lateral flow test kit privileges if you work in health care or adult social care.

If you are eligible for free COVID-19 lateral flow test kits, then you can order through gov.uk. Visit their website and go to the Order coronavirus (COVID-19) rapid lateral flow tests section to get your free lateral flow test kits.

Buy lateral flow test kits yourself – Buying one lateral flow test kit may not be too costly, but if you need to buy at least two kits every week for several weeks, then you will want to buy the cheapest ones you can find.

Your best bet in finding effective but cheap COVID-19 lateral flow test kits is to visit Covidtests.co.uk or similar reliable suppliers. They carry the Healgen rapid antigen test and Flowflex antigen test brands, which are the cheapest in the market today at £1.99 a kit. A 5-pack kit for £9.49 and a 25-pack kit for only £28.99.

There are a lot of COVID-19 lateral flow test suppliers that provide cheap and high-quality lateral flow test kits in the UK and around the world.

Twice-Weekly Tests Are Not Hard to Do

As COVID-19 health restrictions ease around the world, doing twice-weekly lateral tests is not that commonplace anymore. But if you or someone you know ever needs to do them, you now know how to obtain them for free or at a cheaper than the normal price.