MUHC COVID-19 test centre sees major improvements overnight

Testing for COVID-19 is essential to control the spread of the virus. The COVID-19 testing centre at the MUHC performs between 450 and 650 tests per day, 7 days a week, 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. 

In the evening of Thursday, November 19th, a crew started work on redesigning the centre to increase efficiency, safety and comfort for both patients and staff. “Our aim was to help people move through the testing centre in a swift and effective fashion as well as create a centre where staff can work comfortably during the upcoming cold winter months,” explains Lucy Wardell, Nurse manager of the COVID test centre.  

Working through Thursday night and until early morning on Friday, crews put plans into action, rearranging furniture and supplies and marking the floor to indicate proper social distancing and to serve as directional signage to ease the flow of people within the centre. 
 
“Swabbers” and clerks now work in the middle of the room, back-to-back inside plexiglass pods. “Patients circle the periphery to go through the four steps of testing: triage, registration and swabbing prior to being given important information and exiting the centre,” explains Lucy Wardell, Nurse Manager of the COVID-19 testing centre. 
 
Christiana Howe, long-time MUHC nurse, offered to return from retirement to give a helping hand to the testing centre. “The fact that this remarkable transformation took place overnight is impressive, and I am not easily impressed,” she says.   
  
Like most successful projects at the MUHC, the improvements made at the COVID-19 testing centre, was a team effort.  
“Reconfiguring the centre without disrupting service was a major endeavour,” says Lucy. “It required people from various sectors of the hospital to not only work overnight from Thursday to Friday morning, but also on off hours in the days leading up to Thursday.” 
 
This project was made possible thanks to the close collaboration of Admitting, Biomed, Emergency Department, GDI, Housekeeping, Infection Control, Information Services, Laboratory Services, Nursing, Organizational Project Management Office, Security, SNC Lavalin, Technical Services, Transport and the Montreal Children’s Hospital. 
 
Thanks to everyone’s hard work the COVID-19 test centre is in better shape to continue its important work to help combat the spread.  Bravo!