JACKSONVILLE, Fla — As COVID-19 cases increase, so do the number of options to get tested.
More options don’t necessarily mean faster results. The wait can be unnerving for patients, but faster is not always better.
COVID-19 testing in Florida is expanding, but the test itself remains the same. A cotton swab is stuck up your nose or inside your mouth for a few seconds, the swab is placed in a tube and sent off to a lab for results.
It’s how Sara Hilyard got her test done at a local CVS.
“It was pretty simple,” Hilyard said.
She says employees provided a practice kit before she swabbed each nostril for 15 seconds.
The test was easy, but the wait for results was hard.
“It’s nerve-wracking, you can’t go to the grocery store, you don’t want to be around people obviously,” Hilyard added.
Hilyard tested positive for COVID-19 and says she is experiencing minor symptoms.
Federal testing centers around Jacksonville like at Regency Square Mall started self-swab tests on July 8. A spokesperson says there are different tests in which nasal swabs are inserted 3/4 an inch into the nostril.
Dr. Yvette McCarter runs the clinical microbiology lab at UF Health Jacksonville.
She says her staff is holding their own when it comes to turning results.
But says overall, healthcare systems are seeing increased demand.
“I think as more people now want to be tested, it’s sort of stressing the system and leads to inevitable delays,” Dr. McCarter said.
She says in emergency situations, the hospital tries to turn around their tests on the same day but says there’s a reason for the wait times.
“Until the testing system catches up with the demand, waiting is inevitable…Waiting for the answer of a better test is preferable to getting a quick answer that may not be as reliable,” Dr. McCarter said.
Dr. McCarter says that there's little to no difference in how accurate a self swab test is compared to a healthcare worker performing the test.
“If the nurse is available to answer questions and provide some coaching, I think the specimen is just as good as one collected by a healthcare worker,” Dr. McCarter adds.
Hilyard waited 11 days to get her results.
And while difficult to stay in quarantine, she says she must do what’s right.
“You don’t want to be going out and spreading it to other people,” Hilyard said.