A rising third-year medical student at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine has helped set up an operation in Colorado that offers COVID-19 infection and antibody testing.
Josh Volin said he viewed being part of the team behind the testing site in Thornton, Colorado as a way to deal with the chaos caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Thornton is north of Denver.
“I saw the only way back to some normality was testing to ensure a safe work space and future for myself and my community,” said Volin.
To get the ball rolling, Volin said he reached out to the Women’s Health Group in his hometown and inquired about starting a drive-up testing center. According to Volin, they were interested.
“While simultaneously studying for step (exam), the team and I have worked to rapidly open and streamline a testing site … with the plan to expand to four more sites,” he said. “We’ve been open several weeks now and have done a few thousand tests partnering with labs and providers here in Denver.”
For the convenience of patients, both the COVID-19 infection and antibody testing are available as drive-up tests, administered together within about 10 minutes. Appointments are encouraged to ensure test availability, but drive-ups without appointments are also welcome.
Volin said operations are set to ramp up next week and the site will soon begin testing up to 1,000 patients daily.
“What I hope to accomplish through this project is a way to ensure that when Colorado begins to re-open we can be confident that it’s not only safe to do so but the right time, too,” he said.
More info about the testing site can be found at cocoviddriveup.com and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/COCOVID19Testing.
The Colorado testing site is just one of many ways OUWB students have stepped up to volunteer during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other examples include:
- Volunteering at testing site in Detroit — students have been volunteering at the Joe Dumars Field House at Michigan State Fairgrounds, a location that has the capacity to test up to 1,000 people a day and is the result of a unique coalition of southeastern Michigan governments and health care systems that includes Oakland County.
- Helping distribute food and other services — students have been volunteering at Oakland University’s Oakland Center, which has essentially been converted into a food distribution center for families who need food and other services.
- Babysitting for Beaumont physicians/residents — OUWB students have stepped up to fill a unique need by babysitting children for Beaumont Health physicians, residents, and anyone else working extra hard in the battle against COVID-19.
For more information, contact Andrew Dietderich, marketing writer, OUWB, at [email protected].
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