HOLLYWOOD, FLA. (WSVN) - Three additional COVID-19 testing sites opened across South Florida on Friday, and one more is set to open on Saturday.
On Thursday, a testing site opened at the Miami-Dade Auditorium, located at 2901 W. Flagler St., to kick off the start of an initiative to bring five new federally-funded testing sites to South Florida.
The following three additional testing sites opened at 8 a.m. on Friday:
- Dillard High School, located at 2501 NW 11th St. in Fort Lauderdale.
- Blanche Ely High School, located at 1201 NW 6th Ave. in Pompano Beach.
- MacArthur High School, located at 6501 Hollywood Blvd. in Hollywood.
7News cameras captured cars already lining up at the MacArthur High School testing site prior to opening.
Individuals 5 years of age and older are able to get tested for free at the site, regardless of symptoms.
“So, the state has recognized we need more testing in South Florida,” Marcos Osorio, federal and state public information officer, said. “We’ve got registered nurses here, that are actually watching you while you’re doing the swab. So they will coach you through the process.”
“Please understand these are the best, best tools we have right now,” said U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams as he held a face mask during a media conference at the Miami-Dade Auditorium. “It’s important to know that no matter how much testing you have, it will never be enough if we have runaway cases.”
Testing at Miami Jackson High School, located at 1751 NW 36th St. in Miami, will begin on Saturday after a flooding issue pushed back the opening.
7News wanted to show viewers the process of getting COVID-19 testing at one of the new locations, so reporter Raphael Pires registered and got one done.
“It’s imperative that you sign up and you register prior to arrival,” Osorio said. “It’ll help expedite the process.”
The process is simple. You show up to the testing facility, and the staff walks you through it.
The difference between the new testing sites, like the Miami-Dade Auditorium, and the ones that opened before them is that the tests are self-administered. In other words, in lieu of a nurse swabbing you, they hand you the swab to do it yourself.
When asked if self-administered COVID-19 tests will have any impact on the results, Osorio said, “The important part is that you got registered nurses here that are actually watching you while you’re doing the swab, so they will actually coach you through the process.”
The opening of the new federally-funded testing sites comes as the Florida Department of Health reported a record-high amount of new COVID-19 cases and deaths. On Friday, over 12,444 new cases and 135 deaths were reported from COVID-19, bringing the total amount in Florida to over 400,000 and 5,788, respectively.
“We’re drowning. We’re absolutely drowning here,” said Florida International University Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Aileen Marty. “It’s just an overwhelming number of cases: 527 individuals in the ICUs and our doctors and nurses and respiratory technicians are all on overtime. It is just exhausting.”
Marty said more drastic measures need to be taken to slow the spread, as frontline workers in South Florida hospitals are reporting that they are running out of room.
According to state data, more than a third of the total amount of deaths comes from South Florida alone.
“We’re definitely trending in a better direction, and I think if you take out the South Florida cases, the rest of the state is trending even better,” said Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
“The good news, as the general said, we’re seeing our testing and hospitalization numbers stabilize,” said Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez.
Members of the medical community, however, are taking a more urgent tone to the data.
“The reason we are where we are is that we’ve been behind the 8-ball the whole time,” said Marty. “We’ve been chasing the virus the whole time.”
At Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood, there are 13% of ICU beds available, according to the state.
Maggie Hansen, the Memorial Chief Nursing Executive, said, “It’s taxing on them physically, emotionally and spiritually, but some of them are working a fourth shift, a fifth shift, a sixth shift in a week and these are 12-hour shifts. Stay well so we don’t need to take care of you.”
Hansen also said many nurses have to stay in hotels to avoid exposing their families.
Testing at the five sites will be conducted from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m., by appointment only.
All sites will stop operating after 6 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 2.
Registering online for a test can reduce the wait time to around 15 minutes.
To schedule an appointment to get tested, click here.
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