The Long Beach Health Department has opened a free rapid assessment clinic and drive-thru testing site at LBCC’s Pacific Coast Campus to help the overflow of patients at hospitals caused by COVID-19.
The rapid assessment clinic has been in place at PCC’s parking lot located at 1305 Pacific Coast Highway in Long Beach since April 6. Drive-thru testing for COVID-19 began on April 7.
Members of the 315th engineer corps of the National Guard, Long Beach CERT and the Long Beach Medical Reserve Corps including doctors, nurse practitioners, and medical assistants are all working to operate the testing site and clinic.
In a press release issued April 3, the city of Long Beach stated, “The walk-up rapid assessment clinic will not provide treatment, take X-rays or fill prescriptions on-site, but will provide medical assessments and will renew and prescribe medications for people with routine health maintenance issues.”
National Guard member Second Lt. Nasser Yasin, the officer in charge of the operations at the clinic and testing site, spoke about the National Guard’s involvement at the clinic and its day-to-day operations during a phone interview on April 17.
“The main function of that clinic is to relieve some of the local hospitals that are going to be short staffed and limited with resources,” Yasin said.
The National Guard has been able to provide medics to assist in the triage of patients, provide traffic control, check points and ensure everything is extremely orderly and help in the administering of tests for COVID-19.
“Testing can only be done through drive thru-testing. It’s a self-test kit, so patients can administer the kit and do everything themselves. Swabbing, whatever else the kit entails, we collect it and then send it out to be tested,” said Yasin.
A look inside one of the tents that make up the rapid assessment clinic at PCC’s parking lot. The clinic is free and manned by members of the National Guard, Long Beach Medical Reserve Corps, and Long Beach CERT. Photo by Veronica Huerta
The number of patients tested daily at the site has increased dramatically as well, according to Yasin, who said the number of tests administered on April 23 hit 100. That number was originally between 60-70 on April 17.
Kate Kuykendall, spokesperson for the Long Beach Health Department, provided details on the clinic, its testing capacity, and how long it will stay open in an emailed statement on April 20.
Per day, “The testing capacity at our sites is now up to 120 per site. We can expand as more test kits become available. We hope to be able to test every resident who needs a test,” said Kuykendall.
Originally testing was only for people 65 and older or those who had an underlying illness.
Kuykendall said, “Anyone experiencing symptoms can get a test. They don’t have to be older or high risk anymore.”
In regards to how long the clinic and testing site will remain open, Kuykendall said, “We will run it until the Safer at Home restrictions ease up and more private providers become available for walk-in visits. And of course after we peak and begin to see our curve flatten.”
The site continues to operate while LBCC’s campuses remain closed due to shutdown orders issued by the city in mid-March.
LBCC Vice President of Business Services Marlene Drinkwine spoke about the opening of the clinic and how LBCC feels about having a COVID-19 testing site open on its campus.
“We’ve had a close relationship with the city. It was through Lt. Martinez, whose in charge of our campus safety and security, we were contacted by the city for potentially providing facilities for their COVID-19 responses. Truthfully, we had anticipated that phone call,” Drinkwine said.
Representatives from the Long Beach Incident Response Team were given a tour, detailed information and plans to run the testing site at the PCC location, said Drinkwine.
“We knew what we could provide, which of their operations could be suitable to our campuses and we were privileged to partner with the city to service our community,” Drinkwine said.
Regarding how the clinic will affect the opening of classes on campus at LBCC, Drinkwine said, “It’s really difficult to have a clear vision on the next couple months, but it is my belief that the path to open classes is the same path to open operations and when the order is able to be lifted or modified.”
Concerning the Long Beach Health Department’s sanitation processes, Drinkwine said, “They do control their operation, provide custodial, waste management and all associated services with that operation. They have different tiers of plans and they will reach out to us for those tiers.”
The cost of testing clinic operations is being handled in a particular way.
Kuykendall said, “The Health Department is supporting some costs with a grant from the CDC (PHEP). Additional costs will be submitted to FEMA for reimbursement.”
“The FEMA Reimbursements could take up to three years to be paid back to LBCC,” Drinkwine said during the most recent Board of Trustees meeting conducted via Zoom on April 22.
Nevertheless, LBCC continues to aid in the city’s efforts to combat COVID-19.
Drinkwine said in the upcoming week, LBCC plans to house 2-3 personnel from the Long Beach Fire Department in order to reduce the number of personnel at their station.
“It’s a small thing, to provide space and access to facilities, but it does help ensure that they stay healthy so that they continue to service the community,” Drinkwine said.
“Every partnership we have with the city helps ensure safety of students, faculty, and staff because we’re all part of the same community. The more we do to support the city’s activities, the better we serve our students.”
Kuykendall spoke about what it means to be partnered with LBCC under the pandemic.
“The PCC location is easily accessible, somewhat central to Long Beach, and a well-known location to community members. LBCC were great partners from the beginning and very willing to support our needs.”
Whether the site has actually helped to combat the spread of the virus, Kuykendall said, “It’s difficult to say, but we can say it has helped provide access to residents who didn’t have insurance or had trouble reaching their doctors and kept them from having to go to the emergency room.”
Lt.Yasin said, “We have the means to see anyone right now, we have plenty of resources and equipment for anyone that comes in, and they are not subject to ID check.”
Lt.Yasin, members of the national guard, the Long Beach Medical Reserve Corps and Drinkwine are all eager to help as many members of the Long Beach community as possible during this pandemic.
“Everyone’s excited to be out here. It’s nice to do your role in the guard, to be out here in the community and making a positive impact during this pandemic. It’s refreshing and nice to see,” Yasin said.
The clinic and testing site will remain open and free of charge, in an effort to help those who might not have access to much needed medical care, those who have the virus get tested, and ease the burden on local hospitals feeling the pressure from the coronavirus.