What urged me to write about this is because, I just got tested today for COVID-19 and if it wasn’t for my sister then I wouldn’t have gotten tested today. Long story short, a friend and I were going to get tested today and but the place wouldn’t allow it unless you register for it and when we did they were full from today to the end of the week. It’s almost absurd that we have to see our health as a luxury when it should be need for all of us. After parking in a gas station and looking up and calling every Walgreens, CVS and clinics left us with no hope. I decided to call my sister because she works in Ramsey County with public health, she was my only option at that point and I needed her thoughts on what to do. If she hadn’t gave me a website that led me to free COVID testing sites, my friend and I would’ve cried our way home. We both quickly registered for a place and even though there slots were full, it’s never full fully because they give room for walk-ins. My friend and I arrived at the place right as they were opening and asked if we were able to get tested even though we were both on the waitlist. The kind lady approved and we were able to get tested. It was fast, friendly and free. All they needed was your registration proof and phone number and you qualified for it. You can do it in the comfort of your car or sit in one of the seats they placed outside for you. It was a painless procedure for me, yeah sure it was a bit uncomfortable but it only took about 5-10 seconds. I did a nose swab and the lady explained that she was going to swab both of the inside of my nostrils which will trigger me to cough or sneeze. She was right. I coughed. A lot was processing through my head at that moment because I felt a mixed of positive emotions. I thanked the lady and so did my friend and I’m being honest all I remember was coughing and laughing as we were leaving. We were both so caught up on in the moment that we forgot to ask how long the results would take. My friend and I were making our way home and we were just laughing at ourselves and the situation. I was glad that my first experience was friendly, enjoyable and painless. Thinking about my experience really just made me think about our healthcare system. What I experience, should be everyone’s experience. Fast, free and friendly. Fast, because the whole entire procedure probably took about 3-4 minutes and that’s including check-ins. Free, because they didn’t ask for my insurance or identification or anything they just asked for my registration which you can quickly fill out online. Friendly, because the workers were very nice. They cracked a few jokes here and there which made me feel less anxious. Of course, this is just me explaining my first great experience, you won’t truly know until you experience it but there’s something about just being able to do things easily and accessible that gives you a feeling of relief.
If you wanna know what place I went to, I went to the New Hope Baptist Church and did a drive-thru. It’s times like this where I’m thankful for easy accessible resources for people of ages, and color. And most of all, I’m thankful for my sister.
https://www.ramseycounty.us/covid-19-info/health-information/covid-19-testing-sites