COVID-19 Testing Champs
I'd like to highlight one group of tireless individuals who have taken on a new and very different task from their everyday work since Manitoba identified its first case of COVID-19: those who staff, and set up, our testing sites.
These professionals have been pulled from their regular work locations, from their previous roles, clients and colleagues, and have readily been on the literal front-lines of COVID-19.
While the concept of isolated testing hubs was new to all of us four months ago, you would never know that was the case today. Staff have become experts at setting up, managing, cleaning and running these walk-in and drive-thru sites that we would never even have fathomed in our 2020 planning last summer.
The most recent example of quick, flexible planning from our staff came with the opening of a testing location at Access Fort Gary and opening our newest site at 604 St. Mary's Road. In the latter instance, staff from all areas of the region came together in less than a week to turn an empty building into a functional, clinical site that has done more than 1515 tests already since opening day just over two weeks ago.
I'm grateful to everyone who made that possible and to everyone who has worked on, and at, all of our testing sites so far, from providers/ nurses, to capital planning staff to digital health and operations.
Thank you COVID-19 testers and team!
Gina Trinidad
