This is what it’s like to get a COVID-19 swab test – The San Diego Union-Tribune

The San Diego Union-Tribune reporter gets results from Covid-19 test

What have I gotten myself into? How bad is this going to hurt?

Those were some of my thoughts as I stood in line outside San Diego Countys North Inland Live Well Center in Escondido on May 7, waiting to get a coronavirus test. Ive seen videos of people claiming the tests felt like a stick had penetrated their brain, which left me a little nervous.

Publicly funded testing for the coronavirus in San Diego County had been reserved for people who had been referred to a testing site by a medical provider. That changed May 5 when new state-fund testing sites opened in Escondido, Grossmont College in El Cajon and at a closed Sears in Chula Vista.

Expanding tests to people without symptoms will be a way for the county to better track the spread of the virus, and the new sites together have a capacity of performing almost 800 tests daily.

The state contracted with Optum, which is part of UnitedHealth Group, to find 80 locations in California for the sites, and Optum has contracted with labs to get results from samples collected. The wait for results usually is 48 to 72 hours.

The countys announcement about signing up for the tests was described as three easy steps, but there reportedly were problems with the website and issues with scheduling on the first day.

Glitches supposedly had been worked out and were running smoother the day after it launched, which was when I made a reservation, but there still were some kinks. After logging into https://lhi.care/covidtesting and creating an account after proving I wasnt a robot, I filled out several pages asking about my employment, whether I lived or worked in a congregate living facility, had any COVID-like symptoms and other questions.

The site also asks for insurance information because the insurer will be billed at the Medicare rate, though the person getting the test is not supposed to be charged a copay or any out-of-pocket expense under a government rule.

Filling out the questions took a few minutes, and then things got more frustrating.

After putting in my zip code to find the nearest testing site, all of the locations I was given were in Orange County. I was in Oceanside, and Escondido was just 15 miles away, but the website directed me to a location in San Juan Capistrano.

I changed my home location to an El Cajon zip code and set the search function to 50 miles, but got a message that there were no locations within that distance, which wasnt true as there is one in Grossmont College.

After a few experiments like that, the Chula Vista and Escondido sites suddenly popped up, but I couldnt book an appointment because the entire month of May was grayed out.

One page said the Escondido site had an opening on May 7, but when I selected it, the calendar still was grayed out so I couldnt make an appointment. I checked again later and the calendar did work, but the opening now was in about 30 minutes, much too soon to make.

By then I had called (888) 634-1123, the number to make an appointment to talk to a person directly. I lost count of how many times I heard the recorded message, We are experiencing longer than average hold times.

After 40 minutes on hold, an appointment in Escondido popped up for 2 p.m. the next day. I jumped on it. I learned later that day that all appointment slots had been filled for that week, so maybe openings were sporadically popping up because they were becoming available through cancellations.

Or maybe they were just glitches. I talked to someone at Optum who said they were looking into some issues with the website. In any case, the problems werent keeping people away from the testing sites.

I arrived a few minutes early for my appointment, and there were five people ahead of me, all wearing facial coverings and standing on blue Xs taped to the ground 6 feet apart.

Tip for anyone going to their appointment: have your email on your phone ready to show someone at the door, and write down the ID number you were assigned, because theyre going to ask for it.

The check-in process was smooth, and people were polite. I was invited inside through a side door, not the main lobby, and told to stand on a blue line while someone asked for my ID number. I then was directed to another room where I stood 6 feet from a table and talked to a woman I could barely see sitting at a table behind a sheet of thick plastic.

She double-checked my birthday and address and got other information, then handed me a couple of pieces of paper and a plastic bag with a swab and tube inside. I was asked to go around the corner and stand inside a blue square on the floor to wait my turn.

A woman who introduced herself as Sarah told me to sit in a blue plastic chair, then took the plastic bag and top sheet of paper. I asked her how many tests she had done that day, and she said,'Millions. She probably was a bit worn out, but still polite and patient. She told me I was getting a PCR test, which stands for polymerise chain reaction and involves a 6-inch nasopharyngeal swab to collect a sample that will be tested for viral particles.

Thats probably the part youve heard about. Sarah told me to drop my bandanna to expose my nose but still cover my face, and then she slid the swab into my right nostril. It felt like she got the whole 6 inches in there.

I was relieved I felt no sense of gagging or pressure. What I felt was, well, just weird. It felt like something was expanding deep inside my sinus as the swab rotated.

Another 10 seconds, she said. Youre doing great.

It felt like another 20 seconds might have passed before she said, Another five seconds. Doing great.

She then began extracting the swab, which she advised might be the uncomfortable part. It never hurt, but it felt like it was about to hurt, and like something - gray matter? - was being pulled out of my head.

And then it was all over. The actual test takes about 15 seconds. I saw the swab. It had not expanded after all and didnt appear to have brains or anything else stuck to it.

I was directed to follow more blue markings on the floor toward the exit, and I was out about 30 minutes after I arrived. About two hours later I got a text saying my results would be ready in 48 to 72 hours on the LHI.Care website.

My test was on a Thursday, and the nurse who administered it said results might not be ready until the following Monday as the weekend was coming up.

I still hadnt received a text notification late Monday, so I called a number on the LHI website and heard a message to press 2 for results, but got a recording that said, We are currently unable to answer your call. I might have called too late.

I called again the next morning, May 12, and got someone on the phone who said my results still were pending, five days after the test, and the delay might have happened because my test was in the afternoon, and the samples might not have been sent to the lab until the next day.

Then around 3:30 p.m. I got a text that the results were ready.

I logged in and downloaded a PDF that said I was....negative! The page also gave instructions for people with a positive or inconclusive result. People who tested positive but dont have symptoms were advised to stay home unless they need medical care and stay in a specific room as much as possible. People with serious symptoms are told to seek immediate care.

The results gave me some peace of mind, though they were from a test taken five days earlier. Ill still work from home, wear a facial covering around others, wash my hands frequently and use hand sanitizer when I touch anything outside. And while it was a concern, I have not developed a fear of cotton swabs.

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This is what it's like to get a COVID-19 swab test - The San Diego Union-Tribune