Drive-through COVID-19 Testing Centre to Open Tomorrow

HAMILTON, ON – On Friday, April 17, Hamilton Public Health Services, in partnership with Hamilton Health Sciences, St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton and Hamilton’s primary care community, will open a drive-through COVID-19 testing centre at the Dave Andreychuk Mountain Arena located at 25 Hester Street in Hamilton. It will be open from 11 am to 3 pm this Friday to Sunday.  Operational details beyond this weekend will be shared soon. The east and west end assessment centres will remain open as well this weekend and their hours remain the same. The new drive-through testing centre will be operated by the Hamilton Family Health Team and McMaster Family Health Team and is being staffed by primary care clinicians.

The process for determining who should be tested remains the same. A referral from your doctor or Hamilton Public Health Services is required for screening and an appointment at the drive-through COVID-19 testing centre or assessment centres. The centres are adequately equipped with supplies to test more people for the disease. 

A media photo opportunity will be arranged early next week. More details will follow.

As announced last week, the provincial criteria for COVID-19 testing now includes symptomatic individuals from vulnerable populations including symptomatic healthcare workers, first responders, children attending essential daycare and more. The Province continually updates these criteria so please look for an updated list at hamilton.ca/coronavirus  

Increased COVID-19 testing is an important initiative to help in the management of the disease in our community. It is important to note, testing, does not lead to treatment. Everyone is encouraged to continue following public health recommendations around physical distancing, frequent handwashing and covering your cough or sneeze with your sleeve or a tissue.

To access your COVID-19 test results, please visit the provincial online portal at https://covid-19.ontario.ca. It may take up to seven days for your results to be provided. 

There have been 2,850 visits to Hamilton’s two COVID-19 Assessment Centres and 2,270 tests have been completed since opening on March 16, 2020.

Additional Resources

• For regular City of Hamilton COVID-19 updates, please visit www.hamilton.ca/coronavirus and www.hamilton.ca/covidclosures
• Visit https://covid-19.ontario.ca to learn more about how the province continues to protect Ontarians from COVID-19
• Public Health Services’ COVID-19 Hotline: 905-974-9848 or [email protected]