While websites such as Find a RAT provide information on the supply levels at some locations, for fine-grained and up to the minute information, more are turning to community Facebook groups.

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One group that has popped up is Wollongong PCR & RAT Covid Testing. Formed in December, the group now has over 400 members with users regularly posting locations with stock.

Since its founding, the posts in this Facebook group give an insight into how the everyday response to the pandemic has evolved. In late December and early January, most posts focused on accessing PCR tests and the length of wait times, however as posts go on the volume of inquiries shifts towards finding and accessing RAT kits.

As the test kits become more scarce and prices rise allegations of price gouging or inappropriate selling of the tests appear, as they have in the wider media. Users suggest reporting the most egregious price gouging while debating the appropriate price for the in demand items.

Accessing test kits from hospitals has also been a point of discussion. While the Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District advises that RAT kits are not available at emergency departments for general use, users debate second-hand stories of accessing the kits at hospitals.

With more workers now required to conduct rapid antigen tests before work and others simply keen to keep themselves and others safe, organisations such as the Pharmacy Guild have responded by developing their own online RAT finding tools.

The Guild is developing an additional tool for its Find a Pharmacy website, to enable users to see which pharmacies are offering free RAT for concession card holders under the Australian Department of Health program. The Guild expects the functionality to be up and running by Monday, January 24, in line with the commencement of the federal program.

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