Calgary woman shares testing experience

CALGARY — A Calgary woman says the process for getting tested for COVID-19 was easy and relatively painless.

Stacey, not her real name, returned from a trip to Berlin last week.

“When I came back, me and the person I was travelling with started having a tightness in our chest. It wasn’t awful — maybe a very light cough — but we were being cautious, so we called 811.”

She made the call Wednesday and was able to get through before lines got jammed in the past few days. She was told to self-isolate, and that she’d get a call back within a day.

When the phone call came almost exactly 24 hours later, she was told she would need to go for a swab test, based on the information she’d given 811.

At that time, she was given a choice of three different time slots and chose to go for the test that evening.

“There’s a peace officer who’s waiting at the door, and he gives you hand sanitizer and asks you to put on a medical mask,” she said.

From there she was put in a common waiting room with others who had chosen the same time slot.

“It’s a relatively small room, and most of the people in there are waiting to give the administrative staff their information,” said Stacy.

She said it took 30 to 40 minutes to wait in line to provide her paperwork. Within 10 minutes of that, she was called into a private room for the test, which requires a nasal swab.

“For me, it wasn’t too bad. It doesn’t feel good, but I wouldn’t say it was painful.”

Stacey is still waiting for her results. She was told it could take up to five days, and she isn’t expecting a call until Tuesday. Until then she’s working from home and continuing to self-isolate.

Overall, she said the process was efficient and she said the health staff are doing a great job under the circumstances.