The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

St. Charles Health System is now offering a drive-through specimen collection service for COVID-19 testing outside of the St. Charles Family Care clinic at 2600 NE Neff Rd. in Bend.

Those taking advantage of this service must have a provider’s order and call 541-699-5107 to schedule an appointment. The ordering provider does not have to be employed by or affiliated with St. Charles.

Individuals who do not have a provider’s order will be referred to their primary care provider, or to an Immediate Care or Urgent Care clinic for evaluation.

Initially, the drive-through will be open weekdays, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Upon arrival, individuals will participate in a quick registration process, after which a specimen will be collected. All specimens will be sent to the University of Washington for testing, and results should be available within two to four business days.

To use this service, individuals should enter the St. Charles Bend campus from Neff Road and follow the signage on Medical Center Drive to the drive-through entrance.

In addition to offering drive-through specimen collection, St. Charles Bend is now also able to provide rapid on-site COVID-19 testing for eligible patients who are hospitalized. The health system received its first allotment of 120 test kits Friday, allowing its Bend laboratory to begin performing COVID-19 tests on its Cepheid platform on Saturday. The health system is expecting a second shipment of 890 test kits within the next two weeks. Once that shipment is received, the health system expects to expand rapid on-site testing to its hospital laboratories in Madras, Prineville and Redmond.