NHS staff need an appointment in order to get a test at the drive-throughs (SWNS)

NHS staff are being turned away at coronavirus testing drive-throughs if they do not have a pre-booked appointment.

Only 2,000 NHS workers have been tested for Covid-19 and the Government has faced heavily criticism over its failure to ensure more healthcare workers are available to help combat the crisis.

But NHS staff have been left confused by the system as it requires them to arrange an appointment with a specific time and date before they arrive for their test.

All NHS staff need an email confirmation from Public Health England and have been turned away from testing centres even if they show their hospital or practice ID.


Sorry, this video isn't available any more.

Long queues have built up at the testing facility set up in the car park at Ikea, Wembley, which opened on Tuesday.



But at Chessington World of Adventures in Surrey, the testing centre set up in the car park was virtually empty on Wednesday as NHS staff have found the venue difficult to get to.

Long queues were seen at the testing facility at Ikea, Wembley (SWNS)

The test centre in the car park of Chessington World of Adventures was virtually empty (Reuters)

One NHS worker, who was turned away at the Wembley testing centre despite showing his staff pass, told Sky News: ‘It’s very frustrating. We should be the first so we can look after our patients.

‘I’m very sad, I feel like crying now. What country are we in?’

Another NHS worker who was refused entry at Wembley said: ‘I just saw the news and it did not specify that you needed to have an appointment before and they just rejected me.’

Read the latest updates: Coronavirus news live

Health care assistant Joanna Pasieka, 39, told The Sun: ‘I am working on a Covid ward.

‘I rang 111 and they told me to come here, but they won’t test me here without an email. I just don’t know who I have to contact to get an appointment.

‘Its quite distressing. My son has been showing symptoms but I can’t get him tested either.’

NHS staff are desperate to be tested before they get back to the front line (SWNS)

Meanwhile, an NHS emergency engineer drove nearly 50 miles from Brighton to Chessington but was refused a test as he did not have an appointment.

‘It’s my job to fix vital equipment in the hospital. Yesterday I had to fix a sink in a ward with Covid-19 patients,’ the engineer told MailOnline.

‘So I’m off work today, but I want to get back as soon as possible.

‘But they won’t give me a test because I don’t have an appointment. It’s mad. I’ve driven up from Brighton just for this test, it’s completely empty and they won’t let me take the test! Why not?’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.