COVID-19 Clinical Assessment Center

Clinical Assessments & PCR Testing

(for stats formerly in this location, visit /covidinformation )

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Before You Book 

Who Should Be Tested

General Questions 

The Erie Shores HealthCare COVID-19 Clinical Assessment Centre offers clinical assessments for anyone experiencing worsening COVID symptoms and PCR testing to people matching eligibility requirements outlined by the Ministry of Health.

Clinical Assessments 

People with worsening COVID symptoms may benefit from a Clinical Assessment. Either a physician or nurse practitioner will conduct the clinical assessment, including assessing oxygen saturation, vital signs and identifying relevant risk factors. Following the assessment, the patient could be sent home, receive a prescription or possibly referred to the Emergency Department for further testing.

You should book a clinical assessment if you know or suspect that you have COVID-19 and you:

• have been directed by your primary care provider or other health care professional; or
• are unable to safely monitor your symptoms at home; or
• are at higher risk of severe illness, including:
• immunocompromised individuals aged 18 and over regardless of vaccine status
• unvaccinated individuals aged 60 and over
• unvaccinated First Nation, Inuit and Métis individuals aged 50 and over
• unvaccinated individuals aged 50 and over with one or more risk factors.

You should bring a list of your medication and a list of any important medical conditions to your appointment for a clinical assessment.

If you have one or more of the following symptoms, you should immediately call 911 or go to the emergency department:

• Severe difficulty breathing (struggling for each breath, can only speak in single words)
• Severe chest pain (constant tightness or crushing sensation)
• Feeling confused or unsure of where you are
• Losing consciousness

PCR Testing 

The provincial government has changed the guidelines surrounding the eligibility of PCR testing. To be eligible to receive a PCR test at the Erie Shores HealthCare COVID Assessment Centre, you must meet one of the following criteria:

You are eligible for PCR or rapid molecular testing if you have COVID-19 symptoms and are any of the following:

• a patient-facing health care worker or home and community care worker
• a patient in an emergency department, at the discretion of the treating clinician
• a staff member, volunteer, resident, inpatient, essential care provider, or visitor in the highest risk setting
• someone at higher risk for severe COVID-19 who would be eligible for outpatient treatment (treatment outside the hospital) following an assessment and positive test
• someone who lives with a patient-facing health care worker and/or a worker in the highest risk settings
• an outpatient being considered for COVID-19 treatment
• an outpatient who requires a diagnostic test for clinical management
• a temporary foreign worker living in a congregate setting
• underhoused or experiencing homelessness
• pregnant
• a first responder, including firefighters, police and paramedics
• other individuals as directed by the local public health unit based on outbreak investigations in high-risk settings, etc.

• are an individual from a First Nation, Inuit, Métis community, and/or who self-identifies as First Nation, Inuit, and Métis and their household members
• are an individual travelling into First Nation, Inuit, Métis communities for work
• are being admitted or transferred to or from a hospital or congregate living setting
• are a close contact of someone in a confirmed or suspected outbreak in a highest risk setting, or other settings as directed by the local public health unit
• are scheduled for a surgical procedure requiring general anesthetic in the next 24-48 hours
• are in a hospital, long-term care, retirement home or another congregate living setting, as directed by public health units, provincial guidance or other directives

Book your appointment using the widget below. If you are having difficulty, CLICK HERE.

• You can also book an appointment by calling 519-326-2373 extension 4263 (have your health card ready). Appointments are made by availability.
• The COVID Assessment Centre is NOT permitted to perform tests on individuals requesting a test for travel purposes. The only exception to this rule is for temporary foreign workers (TFWs).
  

Additional Testing Locations:

• COVID-19 testing is available at pharmacy locations for COVID-19 testing for asymptomatic individuals that meet the criteria established by the province. LEARN MORE

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Before You Book

• First, determine if you require a COVID-19 test by completing a self-assessment.
• Do not seek testing at multiple COVID-19 assessment centres, as this will result in delayed access and delayed test results for all.
• You will need an appointment to get a test at all assessment centres. Before booking your appointment with us, please review the eligibility information above.

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Who should be tested at a COVID-19 assessment centre?

• Symptomatic Patient-facing healthcare workers or their immediate family
• Symptomatic Staff, volunteers, residents/inpatients, essential care providers, and visitors in hospitals and congregate living settings, including Long-Term Care, retirement homes, First Nation eldercare lodges, group homes, shelters, hospices, temporary foreign worker settings, and correctional institutions.
• Symptomatic outpatients for whom COVID-19 treatment is being considered, including those 70 and older who have a risk factor including obesity (BMI ≥30), dialysis or stage 5 kidney disease (eGFR <15 mL/min/1.73 m2), diabetes, cerebral palsy, intellectual disability of any severity, sickle cell disease, receiving active cancer treatment, solid organ or stem cell transplant recipients, or 50 and older if First Nations, Inuit, or Métis with any of those risk factors
• Symptomatic people who are under-housed or homeless
• Symptomatic elementary and secondary students and education staff who have received a PCR self-collection kit through their school

The following groups are eligible for testing at assessment centres regardless of the presence of symptoms:

• People who are from First Nation, Inuit, and Métis communities and individuals travelling into these communities for work
• People on admission/transfer to or from a congregate living setting
• High-risk contacts connected to confirmed or suspected outbreaks in highest risk settings, including hospitals, long-term care, retirement homes, other congregate living settings and institutions, and other settings as directed by the local public health unit

Rapid Antigen Tests

If you or someone you live with gets a positive result on a rapid antigen test, you no longer need to book a PCR test to confirm your results.

If you are fully vaccinated and otherwise healthy, or are under 12 years old, isolate for five days starting when the symptoms began or from the date of the test, whichever came first. Those who are not fully vaccinated or are immunocompromised must isolate for 10 days.

• is a good indication you have COVID-19
• does not need to be confirmed by a PCR test
• does not need to be reported to a public health unit unless otherwise directed by public health

• on a single test cannot rule out COVID-19 infection by itself
• if you have symptoms, should be followed by a second test 24 to 48 hours later if available. If your second test taken within 48 hours of your first negative result is also negative, this most likely means you do not have COVID-19

When visiting the COVID-19 assessment centre, please follow public health measures, including wearing a face covering and maintaining physical distance from people outside your household or social circle.