A walk-in and drive-through Covid-19 testing site to detect asymptomatic cases only, will open on the grounds of St Joseph’s Health Campus, Mulgrave Street, Limerick City, this Saturday, for six days, the HSE has announced.
The five-bay facility, (Eircode V94 C8DV), will operate from 11am to 7pm from April 10 to April 15, led by the National Ambulance Service and supported by HSE Mid-West Community Healthcare and Public Health Mid-West.
The service will be open to members of the public who live close or within walking distance of the testing centre, and is only available for those who do not have COVID-19 symptoms, including people who are concerned that they may have been at risk of infection in the past two weeks.
Dr Anne Dee, Specialist in Public Health Medicine, at Public Health Mid-West, said the testing facility would be “an additional tool in our armoury in the fight against COVID-19”.
“While infections are dropping to manageable levels and there are no current trends to raise our level of concern, we are using this as an opportunity for active case finding in order to detect asymptomatic positives in the community. Though the daily numbers are low, we know the virus is still among us,” Dr Dee said.
“Finding these cases allows Public Health Mid-West to identify their contacts with the aim of breaking the chains of transmission to prevent further cases and outbreaks. The location of the facility is also within close distance of a number of vulnerable populations who may not have easy access to transport, and our priority is to protect those who are most adversely affected by this disease,” she added.
The HSE said that children can get tested if they are accompanied by a parent.
“You must bring a photo ID with you and provide us with a mobile phone number so we can contact you with your results,” a spokesman said.
They urged people who have symptoms “to consult their GP to arrange a test, and to not avail of the walk-in facility”.
“The walk-in facility is located in a central area of Limerick City with a significantly high population density and considerable ease of access.”
Those eligible to attend for a test must be over 16, or be accompanied by a parent, be asymptomatic but would like a test, live within 5km of the centre, and have not tested positive for COVID-19 in the last six months.
