Welcome to the era of pop-up coronavirus testing.
As leaders in Los Angeles and L.A. County scramble for ways to make coronavirus testing accessible to more underserved communities, a collection of high-minded volunteers accomplished that goal last week in Culver City.
The new testing site at the Blackbird House offered a limited number of free COVID-19 tests for under- and uninsured residents, creating a complement to the growing patchwork of drive-thru/walk-up public and private sites across the region.
The new pop-up site is the result of myCovidMD, an initiative started by the Shared Harvest Fund, a nonprofit that leverages a tech platform to give students and professionals a way to pay down student loan debt through programs that create “social impact.”
The founders of the foundation are three women doctors — Nana Afoh-Manin, Joanne Moreau, Briana DeCuir — who emerged from the trials and tribulations of student debt and its negative impact on mental health.
The new site leans on a team of volunteer medical professionals, who were at the site on Friday to administer the tests.
“The only way we are going to make sure that no individuals are left behind is to get into the community, meet them where they are, and provide the services they need so that we can stop this virus,” said Nana Afoh-Manin, an emergency medicine doctor and Shared Harvest’s CEO, in an emailed statement.
The team is allied with EmergeTM, tele-health partners who helped order 250 rapid-test kits that deliver next-day results. And the kits weren’t cheap, said Anika Jackson, spokeswoman for the Shared Harvest Fund.
On Friday, the line started forming around 1:30 p.m. People came by foot, car motorcycle and bicycle. By the time it was done, about 100 tests had been administered. Organizers said tests did come back positive, but results were still being tallied Saturday.
The group plans to open stage similar pop-ups in Leimert Park next week and Watts, Jackson said.
The doctors hope offering the tests will keep underserved populations from heading into emergency rooms, already strapped or braced for the anticipated surge of COVID-19 patients, Jackson said.
“If we’re taking testing into the community, we’re alleviating that strain on hospitals,” Jackson said.
Faced with a slow roll out of testing from the federal government and limited supplies of tests, L.A. County and city officials, local clinics and hospitals have gradually developed a patchwork of testing sites across the region over the last two weeks. But because testing is limited, you have to meet the criteria for a test. You can register for a test and check your eligibility at https://lacovidprod.service-now.com/rrs. The public sites offer tests only by appointment and only to people who meet the criteria.
With that in mind, Kazan and county officials have been looking for more ways to spur access in more communities. The Culver City site is not part of the city/county network, but it was open to the public, and so will future pop-up sites.
Volunteers will use a screening tool to determine whether a person should be tested. If a person qualifies and is tested, they’ll get the result the next day.
“We know LA is behind the curve,” said Anika Jackson, a spokeswoman for the Shared HarvestFund. “And whatever we can do to help flatten that curve and make sure people are staying safe, we’ll do so.”
City News Service contributed to this story.
