NEWS RELEASE
STEVENSON MEMORIAL HOSPITAL
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The COVID-19 Assessment Centre at Stevenson Memorial Hospital (SMH) will operate with reduced hours on Monday to adapt to the new directives released by the Ministry of Health.
The Centre will run from 8 a.m. to 12 noon on Monday, Oct. 5, 2020, on a same-day appointment basis (i.e. staff will run a pre-registration process). The Ministry of Health released a directive stating that as of Oct. 6, 2020, all COVID-19 Assessment Centres will transition to an appointment-based model with walk-in services being discontinued.
SMH will be implementing an appointment-based model on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2020 where patients will be required to call in and book an appointment ahead of time.
“For us, this means we’re going to operate with condensed hours on Monday to adapt to the new directive,” says Jody Levac, President and CEO, SMH. “It will give us a chance to test out our appointment system while adhering to the Ministry’s new guidelines. Patients will not experience anything different on Monday, other than our operations closing at 12 noon.”
Details regarding the new appointment-based model to be implemented Wednesday, Oct. 7 will be shared once available.
The COVID-19 Assessment Centre at SMH will continue to test patients who meet criteria, which include:
- You are showing symptoms of COVID-19
- Your public health unit or the COVID Alert app notifies you that you have been exposed to a confirmed case of the virus
- You live or work in a setting that has a COVID-19 outbreak, as identified by your local public health unit
- You are eligible for testing as part of a targeted testing initiative as determined by the Ministry of Health or Ministry of Long-term Care or public health (this includes residents, workers or visitors of long-term care homes, residents or workers in homeless shelters or other congregate settings, international students that have passed their 14-day quarantine period, farmworkers and indigenous communities).
Please note that you should call 911 or go to the Emergency Department if you are experiencing:
- Severe difficulty breathing (struggling for each breath, can only speak in single words) • severe chest pain (constant tightness or crushing sensation) • feeling confused or unsure of where you are
- Losing consciousness The Ministry of Health has also released a COVID-19 Screening Tool for Children that will help parents determine if their child needs testing based on symptoms.
For more information about SMH’s COVID-19 Assessment Centre, please visit www.stevensonhospital.ca/covid-19-assessment-centre.html
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