Iron County Medical Center has rapid COVID-19 testing available. Results are usually available within 1 hour. There may be funding to cover the cost of rapid testing for uninsured patients. Orders from a primary care provider are preferred but not necessary. PCR testing is also available. An order is required before scheduling. Please allow at least 2 days to receive results. All testing is done Monday through Friday between 9 am and 3 pm by appointment only.
We realize news of COVID-19 may create some anxiety, but we assure you we are prepared to continue to deliver high-quality care to the patients and communities we serve. Our top priority is keeping you and our team members safe.
It’s important to remember our hospital and clinic effectively care for individuals with contagious illnesses every day. Our medical staff and infection prevention team are experienced in preventing the spread of infection and have implemented the latest protocols from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for screening and testing patients suspected, or confirmed, of having COVID-19.
For more information regarding COVID-19 please visit the Center For Disease Control (CDC) website.
As part of our commitment to keep our patients and visitors as safe as possible, we are making the following changes to our visitor policy:
Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses. Some cause illness in people, and others, such as canine and feline coronaviruses, only infect animals. Rarely, animal coronaviruses that infect animals have emerged to infect people and can spread between people. This is suspected to have occurred for the virus that causes COVID-19. Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) are two other examples of coronaviruses that originated from animals and then spread to people.
This virus was first detected in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China. The first infections were linked to a live animal market, but the virus is now spreading from person-to-person. It’s important to note that person-to-person spread can happen on a continuum. Some viruses are highly contagious (like measles), while other viruses are less so.
The virus that causes COVID-19 seems to be spreading easily and sustainably in the community (“community spread”) in some affected geographic areas. Community spread means people have been infected with the virus in an area, including some who are not sure how or where they became infected.
The virus that causes COVID-19 is spreading from person-to-person. Someone who is actively sick with COVID-19 can spread the illness to others. That is why CDC recommends that these patients be isolated either in the hospital or at home (depending on how sick they are) until they are better and no longer pose a risk of infecting others.
How long someone is actively sick can vary so the decision on when to release someone from isolation is made on a case-by-case basis in consultation with doctors, infection prevention and control experts, and public health officials and involves considering specifics of each situation including disease severity, illness signs and symptoms, and results of laboratory testing for that patient.
Current CDC guidance for when it is OK to release someone from isolation is made on a case by case basis and includes meeting all of the following requirements:
Someone who has been released from isolation is not considered to pose a risk of infection to others
Quarantine means separating a person or group of people who have been exposed to a contagious disease but have not developed illness (symptoms) from others who have not been exposed, in order to prevent the possible spread of that disease. Quarantine is usually established for the incubation period of the communicable disease, which is the span of time during which people have developed illness after exposure. For COVID-19, the period of quarantine is 14 days from the last date of exposure, because 14 days is the longest incubation period seen for similar coronaviruses. Someone who has been released from COVID-19 quarantine is not considered a risk for spreading the virus to others because they have not developed illness during the incubation period.
Community spread means people have been infected with the virus in an area, including some who are not sure how or where they became infected.
