Central Health would like to advise that starting Friday, December 11th, residents in Harbour Breton with COVID-19 symptoms will have access to Rapid COVID-19 testing.
Booking an appointment:
As this is not a walk-in service, anyone seeking to get tested is encouraged to call 811 to arrange an appointment.
Following the call to 811, residents will be contacted by their regional public health office to book an appointment time for the location closest to them.
Testing
Not everyone who books an appointment will receive the Rapid test as it is only applicable to people who have had symptoms for fewer than seven days.
Those who have NOT been symptomatic within the past seven days will receive the standard COVID-19 test.
Process for receiving results
As with the standard COVID-19 test, test results will not be available to patients at the point of testing.
The testing team will get a result within 15 - 30 minutes. This result is "presumptive", meaning that it needs to be confirmed with a second test that will be done by the provincial Public Health lab.
All individuals with symptoms are advised to isolate. If the presumptive result is positive, the patient will be contacted by Public Health and the contact tracing process will begin immediately while waiting for confirmation by the provincial Public Health lab.
If a negative presumptive result is confirmed to be negative, the results will be posted on the Government NL once it is validated by the Public Health lab.
This broader testing is part of the public health investigation to determine how community members may have acquired their infection with the COVID-19 virus. Being tested is an opportunity to help protect the health of all residents.
Everyone is reminded to follow public health measures including wearing masks, practicing good hand hygiene, staying home as much as possible, avoiding entering stores or establishments outside the community and avoid holding gatherings for the time being.
