THUNDER BAY - The recent surge in COVID-19 cases in the Thunder Bay District has many feeling anxious about the spread of the virus and has resulted in a significant increase in the demand for testing.
“We can really notice that anxiety has increased throughout the community and in response to that we’ve really ramped up our operations,” said Shane Muir, community paramedicine coordinator and COVID-19 taskforce commander with Superior North EMS.
“We are performing well over 200 tests a day, into the 250 range, sometime over that. We’ve also been really focusing on community living situations or congregate living situations.”
The Thunder Bay District Health Unit has reported two recent outbreaks of COVID-19 in recent weeks and there are 58 active cases in the district.
Muir said over the summer, Superior North EMS was performing approximately 30 tests a day, but with heightened concern of further spread, they have increased their testing, including surveillance testing in congregate living spaces and vulnerable members of the population.
“We have about 20 facilities amongst the community we are visiting on a regular basis every two weeks and doing surveillance testing so we can mitigate the spread of the virus and making sure those populations are safe,” he said.
“With long-term care, we are waiting to see how the situation evolves. If our levels do go up and we are in that red zone, we are going to increase our testing and do it more frequently. There will be an increase in surveillance testing and symptom testing will be a priority as well.”
Despite the anxiety in the community, not everyone can be tested. In September, the provincial government changed the guidelines for COVID-19 testing, including no longer allowing those who are asymptomatic to get tested unless having been in close contact with a confirmed case.
“Unfortunately we’ve had to turn some people down because they are just not eligible under the new testing guidance,” Muir said. “Unfortunately some people with anxiety are not getting tested because they weren’t in close contact with any outbreak management tracing.”
Superior North EMS conducts testing primarily in people’s homes, as well as at the Confederation College site.
Unlike the spring when the pandemic first began, Muir said they have not had any issues keeping up with the growing demand for tests.
“I think supply chains are in a much better position,” he said. “They have all been established and our PPE supplies are in order. It’s all nailed down. We are getting things quickly and we are well stocked and ready to serve the community.”
Wait times for receiving results have also significantly improved, with some results made available as quickly as the same day.
“Testing at the labs is really fast. They are doing an amazing job at both sites,” Muir said.
“The Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre and the Public Health Ontario Laboratories are working around the clock and getting that testing done and the turnaround times have significantly improved. We are seeing those priority tests come back same day often and the asymptotic tests may be delayed slightly but even then they are seeing them in 48 to 72 hours.”
Anyone who has symptoms of COVID-19 or has been in direct contact with a confirmed case can contact the Thunder Bay COVID-19 Assessment Centre to book a test. More information is available on the Thunder Bay District Health Unit website.
