Today, the Revelstoke COVID-19 testing and assessment site officially opened, and will remain open daily. Located at Queen Victoria Hospital, at a side area that avoids entry into the main hospital and ER completely. Testing and assessment is performed by Interior Health Public Health Nurses by appointment only.
Patients must call ahead to be booked in. This is a tactic being used to avoid crowding and maintain social distancing.
Selkirk Medical Group is letting the community know that, while the site is open, kinks are being worked out. The current phone message, which mentions Salmon Arm and Monday to Friday, are incorrect and can be ignored. The message will be updated on Monday.
At the moment, if the line is busy, callers will get the automated menu. Choose menu option 2 for ‘Public Health Nurse’, which will allow you to leave a message. The nurses will call you back. Don’t forget to leave your phone number
The site number is 1-250-814-2230.
Phones Staffed from 8:30 am-4:30 pm M-F and 9:00 am-2:00 pm Sat-Sun. Appointments will occur 9:30-1:30 daily.
Continue to use the BC Self-Assessment Tool as a personal decision guide. This Revelstoke Assessment # may be called INSTEAD of 811 for information if the tool directs you to contact 811. 811 is still live 24/7 if you need.
Perform the Self Assessment IF YOU HAVE:
1. new cough/cold/fever symptoms, even mild.
2. travel outside of Canada in the past 14 days
3. known contact with a proven or probable C-19 case
The Selkirk Medical Group website is up to date with all relevant information. The groups of local physicians released the following statement today, March 21 2020, regarding COVID-19 in town.
“A word about local COVID positive numbers as we understandably receive many inquiries for this information: to be frank, folks, the physicians simply do not know. There are 4 reasons:
1. At this time the BC Ministry of Health is not providing communities with local case data.
2. People with mild symptoms are not being tested as Canada does not have the capacity to test everyone right now.
3. The role of contact tracing is performed by the Department of Public Health, not physicians.
4. Revelstoke facilities are not the only places Revelstokians may go to for medical care.
Health care workers in town have assessed a couple hundred folks with mild to moderate respiratory symptoms in the past 10+ days, the majority of which were not tested as per current BC guidelines, and were instructed to self-isolate. Our heli-ski company friends have kindly shared information about three March visitors who tested positive, and Backcountry magazine published an article about a 4th March traveller through Revelstoke, also positive. Revelstokians have been in places in Canada and abroad where there are positive cases. COVID-19 is definitely in the community and definitely spreading. Assume that everyone you know is incubating virus and potentially contagious, stay abreast of the guidelines and follow them explicitly. This is the only way we can mitigate the community toll.”
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