A HOSPICE which cares for many people across the Furness region has announced they will be testing nurses and patient visitors.

A spokeswoman for St Mary's Hospice, based in Ulverston, said: "We’re delighted to say our registered nurses can now test In-Patient visitors for Covid-19 before they come onto the unit.

"The process, called Lateral Flow Testing, is the same as the one used in care homes and gives a result within 30 minutes.

"Visitor testing adds another layer of protection for hospice patients, staff and visitors and helps keep our In-Patient Unit open so people in our community can get the support they need."

Lateral flow devices (LFDs) are one of the tools being used to help us to detect and fight Covid-19.

These devices can help identify people who have high levels of virus who do not have symptoms and would not otherwise be coming forward for a test.

Public Health England and Oxford University have performed extensive clinical validation and field evaluations to assess and understand the performance of the tests we are using in communities and care homes.