Fort Worth university opens off campus COVID-19 testing site for first responders
Editor’s note: This story has been updated.
A Fort Worth university has opened a COVID-19 testing site away from its campus for Tarrant County-area first responders as the city’s ambulance service said its employees would begin to be screened before each shift.
The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth said its testing site, opened on Monday, is intended to keep at work police officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, paramedics and constables who test negative.
They will not need to wait two weeks after a possible exposure. Before the site opened, a first responder who may have been exposed to the coronavirus, but who was not experiencing symptoms, was required to be away from work during a 14-day observation period.
“Through our partnership, we are able to test first responders and get results back in five days at the longest but possibly within about 48 hours,” Dr. Mark Chassay, the Health Science Center’s chief clinical and medical officer, wrote in a statement. “That means more first responders can decide with their supervisors whether it is appropriate to return to their job duties sooner.”
First responders should contact the Fort Worth Joint Emergency Operations Center to be tested at the site. A University of North Texas Health Science Center spokesman declined to release its location.
First responders undergoing tests will remain in their vehicles. Test results will be shared with the first responder, who is responsible for informing their employer of the result.
MedStar employees on Tuesday began to undergo a monitored health screening, including a questionnaire and temperature reading.
The screening includes field EMTs and paramedics at the start of every shift, a MedStar spokesman said.
On Tuesday, HSC Fort Worth donated 5,000 surgical masks and 50 N-95 masks to the Fort Worth Fire Department. The university is also urging health organizations across the region to make similar donations.
This story was originally published March 24, 2020 at 9:21 PM.
