A drive-thru coronavirus testing center opened in Chestnut Hill this weekend, one of three such locations established by PhysicianOne Urgent Care across New England.
The group tested 600 patients across three different locations this weekend alone, and says it plans to continue to offer drive-thru testing on weekends.
Local health and state officials in Massachusetts have continued to emphasize the importance of testing for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new virus, as paramount to fighting the pandemic.
“We’re big proponents of testing. We don’t know where coronavirus is unless we test,” PhysicianOne’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Jeannie Kenkare said.
More than 160,000 tests had been conducted statewide as of Sunday, Mass. health officials reported, including nearly 14,000 in the past two days.
PhysicianOne has not mandated people to be one of their patients to get a test, but everyone must complete a medical pre-screening prior to arrival. Health care workers guarded with shields, gowns and gloves swabbed patients with symptoms, including fever, cough, shortness of breath and loss of taste or smell an online pre-screening before arriving
Frontline workers with or without symptoms were eligible to receive testing.
“Just because you don’t have symptoms doesn’t necessarily mean that you don’t have coronavirus,” Kenkare said.
