During lockdown many South Africans lost their jobs and income. So what happens when you need to get tested for Covid-19 but you do not have a medical aid, and definitely not R850 to go for testing at a private facility?
This is the question that many residents of the West Rand, which was declared a Covid-19 hot spot, have been asking.
The Herald reached out to the West Rand District Health Services, and Thuso Montwedi from communications answered a few questions.
Where can you go to get tested?
“All public clinics on the West Rand are screening and testing for free. Any person with Covid-19 signs and symptoms can visit their nearby public clinic where they will undergo the process of screening. The screening tool will determine whether they should be tested. Normally those who present with two or more symptoms or have been in contact with a person who tested positive recently will be eligible for a test,” Montwedi said.
The department can access the names of everyone who has tested positive, whether at a private or public clinic. This assists the department to contact positive cases for contact tracing.
“The positive person will then provide the department call centre agent with names and contact details of their immediate contacts. The department will then contact their immediate contacts to investigate whether anyone is presenting with signs and symptoms. Anyone with signs and symptoms or who is on chronic medication is then tested for free in the comfort of their home.”
How long will you wait for your results?
According to Montwedi this all depends on the number of current cases and the number of people testing.
“When there is a high number of cases the department does a lot of contact tracing and more people visit facilities to test. These can create a backlog and a delay in getting the results.”
At the moment the average waiting time is between three and five days.
Montwedi added that people who provide the incorrect contact details may take longer to be traced and notified.
“These are positive cases that are recorded as unallocated in the statistics report.”
Those who have been tested will be notified via SMS, but they can also add 082 046 8553 to their WhatsApp contacts. Once the number is saved they can send the word ‘Results’ to get their results. This must be done from the same number provided when the client went for testing.
When do you go to hospital and what are the protocols?
If you have tested positive and have been in isolation but are presenting with severe symptoms like struggling to breathe on your own, or have become too sick, you can call an ambulance to take you to hospital as soon as possible.
“The department also provides quarantine and isolation accommodation for clients who, for different reasons, cannot do this at home.”
• Quarantine – You have tested and are waiting for your results
• Isolation – You have tested positive and isolate from the rest of the people while you work on recovering
How many beds are available?
The West Rand has two public district hospitals – Dr Yusuf Dadoo Hospital and Carletonville Hospital; one regional hospital – Leratong Hospital; and four private hospitals.
Dr Yusuf Dadoo Hospital – 37 Covid-19 positive patients
• 60 beds patients under investigation (PUIs)
• Total number of beds in the hospital is 97
Carletonville Hospital – 45 beds Covid-19 positive patients
• 30 patients under investigation (PUIs)
• Total number of beds in the hospital is 75.
Leratong Hospital – 113 Covid-19 positive patient
• 84 patients under investigation (PUIs)
• The hospital is busy renovating one of its wards which will have 30 extra beds. The ward is expected to be ready before the end of January
• Currently the hospital has a total of 197 beds for Covid-19 patients and is looking to increase them by an extra 30 beds
• The public sector on the West Rand has 195 beds for Covid-19 positive patients and 174 beds for PUIs
“The number is expected to increase before the end of January as hospitals are in the process of making available more beds.”
What measures have been put in place for a potential Covid-19 surge in the District?
• Hospitals in the District do have beds for Covid-19 patients and are in the process of increasing this number
• All hospitals in the District have fever tents
• The District has a highly skilled contact-tracing team which services Covid-19 contacts daily
• The Communication, Health Promotion and Ward Based Outreach teams are out daily using different communication channels to educate and inform the community about Covid-19, with an objective of achieving positive behaviour change towards the disease within the community
• Clients that cannot quarantine or self-isolate at home are referred to NASREC
• Working together with the municipality and other government departments in the District ensures that places of work and businesses adhere to the regulations and keep the workers and their clients safe
