The HPSC (Health Protection Surveillance Centre) updated the Public Health Advice for the management of COVID-19 cases and contacts on 19 October 2022. The contact tracing section reflects a new approach, which focuses on the minimisation of severe disease outcomes.
In general, any individual that presents with COVID-19 symptoms or other viral respiratory tract infections should stay at home and limit contact with others until 48 hours after symptoms have substantially or fully settled.
Any individual who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 should follow the guidance and stay at home for seven days and limit contact with others from the date of onset of symptoms. The individual can exit isolation if after day seven the symptoms have substantially or fully settled for the final two of those seven days.
Close contacts with no symptoms and asymptomatic close contacts, do not need to restrict their movements. Also, self-directed PCR testing is no longer recommended.
