Seattle Health Care System Offers Drive-Through Coronavirus Testing For Workers

[pat_k]

Source: NPR

The system's medical center in northwest Seattle has turned a hospital garage lot into a drive-through clinic that can test a person every five minutes. They typically get results within a day or so.

But the idea involves more than convenience. It's also about safety.

"Because of the way this virus could be spread, we want to make sure there's good ventilation," says Dr. Seth Cohen, who runs the infectious disease clinic at UW Medical Center Northwest.... So staff have placed three medical tents on the first floor of the center's multilevel garage, which is not enclosed. Signs and orange cones funnel vehicles to the testing site. On the clinic's first morning of operation, a cold breeze was blowing through the structure. Cohen described it as "excellent airflow that you can feel."

When workers first drive in, they're greeted by Jan Nakahara, a nurse who usually works at the University's Hall Health Center. "I'm going to have you pull up," she tells the driver. "Don't get out of your car."...

For now, the drive-through clinic is limited to health care workers in the university's health care system. And they need to have a fever, dry cough, or other symptoms of COVID-19, the disease caused by coronavirus.

"If they had symptoms, they would go and fill out a survey online," Nakahara says. "And then if the screeners thought it sounded like it was a possibility of coronavirus, then they were given an appointment today."


Read more: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/08/813501632/seattle-health-care-system-offers-drive-through-coronavirus-testing-for-workers

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It is great to see innovative approaches gearing up.

[dewsgirl]

1. I absolutely love to hear this and I pray the concept spreads.

[christx30]

2. I was watching a news report about a drive through testing clinic

in S. Korea. They looked like they really had their act together. One of the reporter's final words is that the Koreans hoped it would become a model for testing world wide. And from what I saw, if everyone else is half as good as them at it, we'll all be alright.

[dewsgirl]

7. Yes..South Korea will be the country in the best shape,

when all is said and done. I am highly impressed with every aspect of their handling of the situation.

[SunSeeker]

3. It is the ideal way to test infected people--keep them in their car!

But if they're too sick to drive or don't have a car, they will have to involve a driver, which can endanger the driver.

[pat_k]

5. And that is where Gates foundation home-testing model comes in...

... Currently working to launch in Seattle, but it could perhaps be expanded, or become a model for similar programs.

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/health/gates-funded-program-will-soon-offer-home-testing-kits-for-new-coronavirus/

[RealityChik]

13. Currently, this is for non-symptomatic UW healthcare workers only...

Workers who are experiencing symptoms are not using this system. Since people can test positive with no symptoms, UW is monitoring healthy workers who are exposed to the virus by nature of their work, to limit the spread.

Yes, would love to see it expanded, even if it's only for healthcare workers and first-responders in the entire state, especially since there is a shortage of healthcare workers to manage the pandemic, especially if the virus keeps spreading exponentially at the projected rate of every 6.1 days.

This measure is a brilliantly forward-thinking means of keep healthcare workers healthy, diverting those needing quarantine, and caring for those that become infected sooner than later.

[mahina]

4. Now that is great news!

Thank you so much.

[OneCrazyDiamond]

6. Isn't there a massive shortage of tests?

Where are they getting these tests from?

[pat_k]

9. University of Washington

When DT's FDA finally lifted the barriers to medical centers and other labs developing and processing their own tests (barriers they put in place, not Obama's admin as they claimed) UW launched their own program.

Last week they had tested 400 samples -- and had capacity to do more. They were processing faster than the tests were coming in. Slower to set things up on the collection side.

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/05/812679331/when-coronavirus-struck-seattle-this-lab-was-ready-to-start-testing

I'm not sure if UW is where the home testing kits will come from or be processed, but they are rolling.

[OneCrazyDiamond]

10. I thought we needed way more tests, and trump wasn't releasing them.

[pat_k]

11. UW is using their own -- they were ready as soon as FDA...

... lifted barriers to medical centers developing and processing their own tests.

Unfortunately, DT admin did not do this until sometime in late Feb/early March, or they would have been ramped up a lot quicker.

[OneCrazyDiamond]

12. Got it.

I wonder why they delayed.

[pat_k]

14. One of the many questions in the colossal testing debacle.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100213059853

[Scarsdale]

8. Obviously, if ANYTHING is to be done

we the people have to initiate it. The government is absolutely USELESS with the Orange Blob at the helm. Thank God for these innovative health care workers in Seattle. They put their own health and safety on the line, to help their fellow workers. THANK YOU Seattle.

[cemaphonic]

15. My wife went through this

She's an employee of the UW Medical Center and caught a cold last week. Fast and efficient, and got the results back in a day. (thankfully not coronavirus). She said the nasal swab hurt like hell though.

[pat_k]

16. Results must have been a big relief!

Drag about the pain tho.