On Monday, Saint Francis Health System re-opened its drive-thru testing site amid rising flu cases.
“What we’ve experienced is very high emergency room volumes and our urgent cares are setting records for people coming and seeking help there,” said Brent Dennis, Chief Medical Officer for Warren Clinic.
Dennis said the drive-thru testing site is taking some pressure off their emergency rooms and urgent cares.
“Our urgent care are still going to be busy, but we want the people who need to be there the most have access to that, keep wait times down and maybe the people that don’t need to be there have a better avenue for testing,” Dennis said.
Dennis said this keeps you from being exposed to other illnesses while waiting in emergency rooms, and it doesn’t take much time out of your day.
If you have any symptoms or just want to be cautious, it’s good to get tested.
“Treatment for the flu works best when treated early, so we want to make sure if you need an antiviral treatment, you get that really early in order for that to be effective,” Dennis said.
That’s why Ellen Lucas got tested Wednesday morning. She said it’s just a precaution for her.
“I’m going to come through and have them check for either flu or COVID, this was incredibly good and easy way to do it,” Lucas said.
Lucas said it was a quick process, and now she will at least have peace of mind.
“I was the second car here, it was nothing, it was like eight minutes,” Lucas said.
Saint Francis said the drive-thru testing will remain open as long as there’s a need for it.
The Saint Francis drive-thru testing site is open Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. - 8 p.m., and Saturday-Sunday, 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. No appointment needed.
NOTE: Patients do not need to be current Warren Clinic patients to receive testing at the drive-through site.
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