SW health department, National Guard conduct COVID-19 testing in McCook

The Nebraska National Guard (NG) conducted a testing last Thursday in McCook hosted by the Southwest Nebraska Public Health Department (SWNPHD) that screened 102 people for COVID-19, said health district director Myra Stoney.
All test results from this event were negative, she said.
The event was held at the Red Willow County Fairgrounds but was not open to the public.
Individuals from the nine counties within the health district were contacted and given an appointment based on their level of risk, said Joy Trail, SWNPHD program manager.
Event objective
The one-day event was organized by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and carried out by a mixture of personnel from multiple units of the Nebraska Air, Army National Guard.
The purpose of the event was to look for hidden cases of COVID-19 in health districts with low or no positive case numbers, said Trail.
SWNPHD worked with local partners to identify individuals to test, she said.
Three risk levels were prioritized: persons with symptoms consistent with COVID-19 who were not seen by a provider for testing; persons with travel history within the past 14 days to an area of high transmission (aka hotspot); and high risk healthcare workers and first responders, Trail said.
Last Thursday was the first run at holding an NG community testing event.             “There may be similar opportunities in the future, but we have not been given anything specific,” she added.
Stations were set up by NG members to systematically screen patients as they drove through the community building at the fairgrounds.
There were 12 people from Chase County who were tested during Thursday’s event with two being listed as healthcare workers, said Trail.
When the testing event was completed, a bleach decontamination process was done with each staff member followed by the same decontamination of the entire building, Trail said.
Six other people from the SWNPHD health district were tested in North Platte last week, said Stoney.
Strategy going forward
Mass testing is an important strategy to help identify hidden cases, said Stoney.

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