• Infection control procedures are necessary to prevent infections from spreading during healthcare delivery. COVID-19 Infection Control recommendations provided by the CDC may be accessed at: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/hcp/infection-control.html
• For initial diagnostic testing for SARS-CoV-2, CDC recommends collecting and testing upper respiratory tract specimens (nasopharyngeal AND oropharyngeal swabs).  
• In considering whether a patient represents a person under investigation (PUI) for COVID-19, healthcare providers should immediately notify infection control personnel at their healthcare facility and their local or state health department. Use links below:
  • Local health department: https://www.naccho.org/membership/lhd-directory 
  • State health department: https://www.cste.org/page/StateEpi 
  • PUI documentation: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/downloads/pui-form.pdf 
• Laboratory testing for other pathogens from PUIs (including testing for influenza, RSV, respiratory pathogen panel, etc.) should not be delayed. In order to provide adequate infection control, please notify AEL in advance of sending specimens from a PUI for COVID-19. A separate specimen(s) will be required.

Dear Providers,

East Side Clinical Laboratory is taking further steps to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Minimizing the risk of transmission among staff and between staff and patients as well as protecting people who are at higher risk for adverse health complications is of utmost concern to us.

In light of these concerns, we have implemented the following change to our practice to mitigate the impact of COVID -19:

We will not be providing nasal/throat swab collections (e.g. for influenza, group A strep, throat culture testing) at our Patient Service Centers or Independent Physician Offices during the ongoing COVID19 pandemic.

Note: Patients visiting a patient service center must wear a mask or face covering and must not be experiencing COVID -19 symptoms. Patients may not take their mask or face covering off while in our Patient Service Centers. We do not offer swab collection for COVID-19 testing.

Our mission is to provide the highest quality laboratory testing to our patients and clinical providers to aid in the diagnosis and treatment of disease.

For the safety of our patients and our staff, we cannot perform any specimen collections that would require patients to remove their masks or face coverings.

Thank you,

Walther M. Pfeifer, MD, FCAP Laboratory Director East Side Clinical Laboratory

• As the availability of diagnostic testing for COVID-19 increases through clinical laboratories performing molecular diagnostic (nucleic acid-amplification tests) tests authorized by the US FDA under an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), testing will be offered to a wider group of symptomatic patients. 
• Clinicians should use their judgment to determine if a patient has signs and symptoms compatible with COVID-19 and whether the patient should be tested. Decisions on which patients receive testing should be based on the local epidemiology of COVID-19, as well as the clinical course of illness. Most patients with confirmed COVID-19 have developed a fever and/or symptoms of acute respiratory illness (e.g., cough, difficulty breathing). Clinicians are strongly encouraged to test for other causes of respiratory illness, including infections such as influenza.
• Epidemiologic factors that may help guide decisions on whether to test include: any persons, including healthcare workers, who have had close contact with a laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 patient within 14 days of symptom onset, or a history of travel from a geographic area with the ongoing transmission (see list above) within 14 days of symptom onset.
• State and local health authorities may assist or guide clinicians in PUI identification, evaluation, and testing.  
• Clinicians will also be able to access laboratory testing through public health laboratories in their jurisdictions.