Behind the scenes of Sixteenth Street Community Health Center's COVID-19 testing site

NOW: Behind the scenes of Sixteenth Street Community Health Center’s COVID-19 testing site
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MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Recently five of Milwaukee’s community health centers announced they would be increasing their COVID-19 testing capacity for the community.

But until now, we haven’t been able to see exactly how it works.

Friday, CBS 58 went behind the scenes at Sixteenth Street Community Health Center.

Health officials say it’s a quick test -- you drive up in your car, one swab goes up your nose, the other in your throat.

But because so many of us aren’t showing symptoms, testing to identify those infected is the most important way to slow the spread of the virus.

“I felt fever, body aches, headache, and shivers,” said Ahmed Kozanoglu.

Kozanoglu is one of dozens of patients who got tested today for COVID-19 at Sixteenth Street Community Health Center’s Parkway location.

By the look on his face, it wasn’t pleasant.

“The thing that goes in here is not very nice,” he said.

But he didn’t want to leave it up to chance.

“I think it’s worth it, just peace of mind of knowing you have it or not have it. It’s worth it.”

Elizabeth Pyne is the Medical Director At 16th Street Community Health Center.

“We have over 400 patients that have tested positive,” said Pyne.

She says testing is easy; you call in or register for an appointment, then head over to your local site for drive-thru testing.

“A lot of other clinics in the area do not have the ability to test for one reason or another, so we want to make sure that we’re providing the service for the entire community,” she said.

Results come back within 1-3 days, and Pyne says knowing who has it can help track the prevalence of the virus and help stop it.

“We want to make sure that patients know if they are positive so they can stay home, keep others safe, and continue to slow the spread of the virus.”

You don’t have to be a patient of Sixteenth Street to make an appointment to get tested.

They’re available Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. - 12 p.m. and then 1-4 p.m.

If you’d like to register to get tested, you can do so here: https://sschc.org/.

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