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  WNC-MOAA : Western North Carolina Chapter MOAA COVID-19 and Health: Information about the Pandemic

 
 
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Feeling sick? Here's the process for COVID-19 testing

From The Mountaineer 19 March

Patrick Johnson, Haywood County's public health services director, issued these steps for those who believe they may have contracted the coronavirus COVID-19.

If you have no symptoms, there is no reason to be tested.

If you have fever or cough or trouble breathing, testing may be indicated, and you should contact your primary care physician. Call your provider first to be assessed. Do not show up in person without a phone assessment.

There is no “screening” test for COVID. It is a diagnostic test for symptomatic people who have been exposed to the virus.

The criteria to be tested is having a fever (temperature of greater than 100.2), cough or shortness of breath and a negative flu test.

The test is a specimen collection, not an on-site test. It involves placing a swab inside one nostril, leaving it in place a few seconds to absorb secretions and then place the tip in a viral medium and send it off to a lab for processing, which can take two to four days.

Anyone tested for COVID-19 is immediately placed under home isolation until test results are returned, at which point their situation will be reassessed.

Haywood County Health Department is working with community partners to explore the feasibility of establishing drive-through testing in the near future.

Those with questions can call the North Carolina Coronavirus Helpline at 866-462-3821. This line is answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

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Posted 03/19/20 by WNC MOAA Under Serious Permalink 1586823899