Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

2,000 calls a day: Demand soars for UNLV Medicine drive-thru testing

0326_sun_TestingUNLVMedSchool

Steve Marcus

A health care worker with the UNLV School of Medicine tests a patient for the coronavirus at a drive-thru testing site Thursday, March 26, 2020. UNLV Medicine, the clinical arm of the UNLV School of Medicine, started conducting COVID-19 testing by appointment for people who meet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

Testing at UNLV School of Medicine

A health care worker with the UNLV School of Medicine communicates with a driver at a drive-thru testing site Thursday, March 26, 2020. UNLV Medicine, the clinical arm of the UNLV School of Medicine, started conducting COVID-19 testing by appointment for people who meet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. Launch slideshow »

UNLV Medicine has received approximately 2,000 calls per day from Las Vegas residents seeking a test for COVID-19 since curbside testing was announced Tuesday, according to a spokesperson.

The university began offering free drive-thru testing for coronavirus by appointment Tuesday following a “soft opening” exclusively for hospital staff and first responders on Monday. As of 1 p.m. Thursday, the university’s drive-thru program had about 1,400 tests on-hand, enough to last until April 6 based on the current rate of testing, said Paul Joncich, manager of media relations at UNLV Medicine.

“The doctor in charge is confident we will do it for at least two weeks and anticipates and fully expects to receive another shipment of tests,” Joncich said.

Fifty tests were administered Monday during the soft opening, 144 were done on Tuesday, 158 were done on Wednesday and the university was on track to complete 220 tests Thursday as of that afternoon, he said. The university initially had set up one traffic lane for curbside testing, but due to the high volume of patients, has shifted to three lanes per day and three tests every 10 minutes of operation, Joncich said.

The service appears to be one of the few places where Las Vegans, insured or uninsured and regardless of their risk factor for COVID-19, can get tested, so long as they have hallmark symptoms of coronavirus or came into contact with someone diagnosed with the virus. Amid a nationwide shortage of COVID-19 tests, Las Vegans have reported showing up to emergency rooms in the area with coronavirus symptoms and being unable to obtain tests because their symptoms were not life-threatening, or because there were not enough tests available.

As of Thursday morning, 350 people in Clark County had tested positive for coronavirus, according to the Southern Nevada Health District. Ten people across the valley have died from the novel virus.

Considering demand for testing, Joncich urges those calling the curbside testing hotline to leave a call-back number and be patient.

“There’s a backup at the call center because people are calling and they have to be screened for meeting (Centers for Disease Control) criteria,” he said.

Most of those manning the call center are UNLV Medicine students volunteering their time, he said. Although the call center is accepting calls between 8:30 a.m. and 3 p.m., volunteers have been working until 8:30 p.m. at times to return people’s calls, he said.

Volunteers will return all calls and screen callers for eligibility over the phone to determine whether they meet testing criteria as established by the CDC. Once a patient has secured an appointment, they should show up at that time to be screened again in person and then tested via a nasal swab.

Despite the popularity of the service, those screening people for symptoms and administering the tests are not at risk of running out of protective gear at this point, Joncich said. The university is doing its best to rotate shifts for workers on site to avoid burnout as well, he said.

So far, only a few people have showed up without an appointment and had to be turned away, Joncich said.

“Metro was preparing for the worst and for a bunch of people showing up with no appointment, but it hasn’t happened. People are very good so far and are coming with appointments,” he said.