Although no confirmed cases of coronavirus have been verified in Butler County, testing has begun.
Dr. John Love is an infectious disease specialist with Butler Health System.
“In the parking lot across the street from the main hospital, we now have a big white tent and a fancy trailer that have been set up for a drive-thru COVID testing site,” Love said.
Testing will be done daily from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. however only those with an order from their primary care physician will be tested. People must have symptoms in order to be tested.
Over 30 people were tested on Tuesday but, according to Love, receiving results will take some time.
“This is something that we’ve been trying to provide for our community and patients for a while, so this isn’t a rapid situation where you drive in, we swab you and tell you right away or even call you later that day. [The test] is going to take awhile,” Love said. “We still provide patients with guidance quarantining themselves until we have an answer, so just in case the test ends up being COVID, we don’t expose anyone to the virus in the meantime.”
Symptoms for coronavirus include a fever of over 100.4 as well as lower respiratory distress such as a cough or shortness of breath that has developed over the course of less than a week.
You can listen to our interview with Dr. John Love, Infectious Disease Medical Director, with the Butler Health System below. We recorded this interview on Tuesday, March 17, 2020 around 4pm. #ButlerRadioNews #ButlerHealthSystem
