NEWS RELEASE
GEORGIAN BAY FAMILY HEALTH TEAM
and COLLINGWOOD GENERAL AND MARINE HOSPITAL
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On Friday, September 25, 2020, Ontario Updated its COVID-19 testing guidelines. At this time, publicly-funded testing is available for Ontarians at assessment centres if they are:
- Showing COVID-19 symptoms
- Have been exposed to a confirmed case of the virus, as informed by your public health unit or exposure notification through the COVID Alert app
- Are a resident or worker in a setting that has a COVID-19 outbreak, as identified and informed by the local public health unit
- Eligible for testing as part of a targeted testing initiative directed by the Ministry of Health or the Ministry of Long-Term Care.
The Collingwood assessment centre has extended its testing hours during the day and on weekends to keep up with the increased demand from symptomatic children, needing a negative result to be able to return to school and daycare. Unfortunately, at the same time, we have seen a significant increase in patients failing to attend a booked appointment. This results in many lost appointments every day and lengthens our wait times.
“Requests for testing are growing rapidly, but at this time we must follow the eligibility criteria from the Ministry of Health, which does mean we are unable to test everyone” says Marie LaRose, executive director, Georgian Bay Family Health Team. “Additionally, we have noticed a significant increase in ‘no show’ appointments over the past week. We ask anyone who no longer needs their appointment, to call us. If you booked through the online waitlist, you can use the waitlist again to cancel. Simply reply to the text message that you receive; ‘please cancel my appointment,’ and we will do the rest." Doing so allows others who are patiently waiting for an appointment, to move up in the line.
To book an appointment at the Collingwood assessment centre:
- Call 705-444-5885 to speak to a team member during business hours, Monday to Friday 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Click “Get on Waitlist” at www.gbfht.ca/cac, Monday to Friday between 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Once patients have joined the waitlist, they will be queued to receive a phone call during normal business hours.
Patients arriving for an appointment are asked to check in with the parking lot person on arrival at the Assessment Centre in the Family Health Team parking lot, at 186 Erie St. At the time of their appointment, patients will drive through the tent, and assessment and testing will be undertaken while patients remain in their cars.
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