The site set up by the city of Antwerp to test residents for the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 will open tomorrow morning at 09.30. The testing is open to all residents of the nine districts of Antwerp, as well as residents of the neighbouring municipalities Borsbeek, Schoten, Stabroek and Wommelgem.
The ‘test village’ is not intended for people with symptoms of Covid-19. Those people should first contact their GP.
The site at Spoor Oost in Borgerhout is accessible only by appointment via the website www.testcovid.be.
The site has three testing stations, two for cars and one for cyclists and pedestrians. But it is not open to anyone. Visitors must first have received an activation code from a contact tracer or from the federal health ministry on return from a red zone.
An appointment has to be made, and an e-ticket or QR code obtained by return on answering a few questions and filling in the activation code.
The idea behind the village is to relieve the pressure on front-line medical establishments, just as the number of positive Covid-19 tests in Antwerp is on the increase. The test centre will be open seven days a week from 09.30 to 16.30 for the time being, carrying out at estimated 500-600 tests a day for the time being.
However should the situation get worse, the village can open for longer, and the number of testing stations can be increased.
Drivers and passengers remain in the vehicle to be tested, while pedestrians and cyclists pass through on foot. Social distancing rules are in force.
In the initial phase, all test samples will be handled by the Biogazelle laboratory in Ghent. Later, they will be sent to a new lab at the university of Antwerp. Results will be available in 24 to 48 hours, and can be consulted via a family doctor or the website www.mijngezondheid.be.
Anyone testing positive must contact their GP immediately.
Alan Hope
The Brussels Times
