In a bid to make a huge blow against the COVID-19 pandemic, the city government of Taguig has made testing more accessible by implementing a drive-thru testing center. The said testing center is a part of the city’s Systematic Mass Approach to Responsible Testing Program, or SMART for short.
How to avail of the drive-thru testing center?
For Taguig city residents interested in getting tested, they can visit www.taguiginfo.com or call the Taguig COVID-19 hotline for assessment. From this step, they will be given a control number through email plus a date and time for the testing schedule, as well as further instructions and a form they have to fill out.
As Mayor Lino Cayetano said on May 4, 2020, those interested can proceed to their drive-thru centers located in Lakeshore or BGC. Note however that they are implementing a by-schedule basis for the drive-thru testing centers and one cannot simply go directly.
The drive-thru testing helps because it effectively enforces social distancing especially between the test subjects
On that end, persons availing of this service must show up at the testing center on their given schedules, must present a digital copy of the control number assigned to them, proceed to get tested, go home, then wait for the results via a phone call from the Taguig City Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance Unit.
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But what if I don’t have a car?
For those who do not own their own vehicles, they will still follow the steps indicated above and the only difference is that they will be picked up from their homes and then ferried back after the procedure. Results likewise will be given via phone call.
The city of Taguig is aiming to provide testing for up to 15,000 Taguig residents. And to support this project, the said city has also partnered up with the Philippine Red Cross, St. Luke’s Medical Center at BGC, and the Department of Health’s Institute for Tropical Medicine.
We're really wishing that other cities will also implement something similar
This is the first-ever drive-thru testing center in the country, and hopefully, it will indeed contribute a massive blow in ending the spread of the novel coronavirus.
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