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Lake Of The Ozarks Coronavirus 'Drive-Thru' Could Soon Swab Hundreds Per Day [VIDEO]

  • Updated
  • 3 min to read
Testing Station

OSAGE BEACH, Mo. — The Parkway Center, across from Lake Regional Hospital, has been seeing less action in the past several months, since the closure of the Woods Supermarket and Ezard’s Ace Hardware that operated there. But traffic has been picking up this week, and it is a very specific kind of traffic: people being tested for COVID-19.

Lake Regional’s Drive-Thru Testing Station is in full operation at the site, which is the sole testing location for COVID-19 at the Lake of the Ozarks. It is located at 5816 Osage Beach Parkway, directly across the Parkway from the entrance to Lake Regional Hospital.

Mike Dow, Director of Ancillary Services for Lake Regional Health System, says Lake Regional set up this station, officially named the Parkway Testing Center, to prevent a large amount of potentially infected people from coming through the hospital to be tested. They wanted “a location that’s close to the hospital, but not right where the emergency room entrance is,” he explained.

This site is exclusively for COVID-19 testing, and that makes for a very quick and seamless experience. In fact, patients can be in and out in five minutes or less. Right now, the site can handle between 30-40 patients per day. But capacity could be expanding in the coming weeks.

If someone is concerned they may have COVID-19, Dow says they should first call their primary care provider (for those who do not have one, Lake Regional has a 24/7 nurse line they can call: 573-348-7419). Their physician will then determine whether to recommend a test, and coordinate with Lake Regional. Some test requests may still be rejected by the state, since testing supplies are still limited. But once a person is approved to be tested, Lake Regional will call them to set up an appointment at the Drive-Thru Testing Station.

Dow emphasized this is the only testing location in the Lake area, and tests aren’t reserved only for patients of Lake Regional doctors. “We’ll take anybody in the community, up to 30 to 40 a day, right now,” he said.

(story continues below)

Lake Regional Health System has opened their drive-thru COVID-19 Testing Facility in Osage Beach. Tests are by appointment only.

video by LakeTV

The Testing Process

The whole process takes only about 5 minutes, and there’s little to no wait, since all visits are scheduled. Here’s what the process looks like:

All patients must wear a mask, and they remain in their vehicle the entire time.

Testing Station Entrance

The patient pulls through the first checkpoint where officers make sure they have a scheduled appointment and provides the patient with a mask if they do not have one. 

Testing Personnel At Lake Regional Testing Station

Then the patient pulls forward to the mobile unit, where three medical personnel await. They are wearing full Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): white protective clothing, gloves, masks, and full face shields.

Nasal Swab

The test administrator explains the process to the patient, who then pulls their facemask down, just exposing their nose.

Bagging The Sample

The nasal swab is taken, placed into two bags, and the patient drives away.

The patient's physician will contact them with test results.

Cost & Capacity

Dow said the federal government has made money available that will waive any copays for the test. And for those who are uninsured and worried about the cost, he said, “If you are having to decide between gas, food, and a COVID test… that should not stop you from asking the questions of your provider or the nurse line, ‘Should I be tested?’” He noted federal funding is also being made available to help cover the cost of these exams in some situations.

Once more testing supplies are available, Dow said the drive-thru testing center’s capacity will be expanded: in a week or two they could be capable of around 80 tests per day, he predicted. Later, once CDC removes testing restrictions and supplies are in abundance, they could test 100-200 per day, he said.

“Testing is still not happening at the rate that we would all like to see it,” he acknowledged, adding, “Had we been able to mass-test, we probably would have had many more positive cases than we have seen today.” The virus is already present in the Lake community, he said, and testing simply helps them confirm the extent of that. “It also helps us triage,” he added.

Dow’s—and Lake Regional’s—advice to the community is to continue practicing good sanitization, hand washing, and social distancing.

“The issue is that depending on your age, you can be relatively younger and be positive and have mild symptoms. You can be spreading it throughout the community but you yourself don’t feel that sick,” Dow explained, adding, “The more we behave like we have it already, the safer we’ll all be.”

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