A new drive-through COVID-19 testing site will officially open in Taipei’s Wenshan District on Wednesday to help ease the strain on hospitals during the current surge in local infections, according to the city government.
The new testing site, located at the mass rapid transit maintenance depot near Taipei Zoo in the district’s Muzha neighborhood, will offer around 800 PCR tests per day, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (???) said at a COVID-19 press briefing Tuesday.
Some 400 PCR tests for individuals above the age of three will be available in both time slots of 8 a.m.-12 p.m. and 1 p.m.-5 p.m. from Mondays through Sundays, Ko said.
Each time slot will allow for online reservations for 300 people and on-site registration for 100 people, Ko added.
“In addition to driving a car, also welcomed are motorcycles — which is probably more convenient — and bicycles are also fine,” Ko said.
The new testing site will be Taipei’s 12th community testing site and second drive-through testing site after one in Beitou-Shilin Technology Park, which started operations on May 4.
Due to the location of the testing site, which is close to the border with New Taipei’s Xindian District, Taipei Deputy Mayor Huang Shan-shan (???) said during an inspection of the site Tuesday that non-Taipei residents are also welcomed at the site.
The importance of the testing site is to take the pressure off nearby Wanfang Hospital’s emergency room, Huang said.
Taiwan is in the midst of a COVID-19 surge, which has challenged hospital emergency rooms and medical capacity, according to local media reports.
Huang said she hoped that in the future the testing capacity at the new site would be raised.
She added that the site could also double up as a field clinic if necessary, to help take the pressure off hospitals by treating mild and asymptotic cases.
Also on Tuesday, Taipei launched a trial program in the districts of Zhongshan, Wanhua, Wenshan, and Beitou whereby neighborhood health clinics would be designated as points of contact for those undergoing home quarantine.
The purpose of the trial program, under which those quarantined can phone up with any COVID-19-related queries, is to seek out any issues or problems before the program officially launches city-wide on May 16, Ko said.
When the program officially launches, it will be rolled out across 202 community clinics, Ko added.
Taiwan’s single-day COVID-19 cases exceeded 50,000 for the first time on Tuesday, as it recorded 50,828 new cases, including 10,283 in Taipei, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel