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Health screenings required to enter CHC
Two representatives of the Commonwealth Health Care Corp. are now ready to assist patrons who enter the facility by giving them a health screening as a precautionary measure. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)
As a precautionary measure, those entering the Commonwealth Health Center in Garapan will undergo a brief health screening for COVID-19 prior to entering the hospital’s five entry points.
The Commonwealth Healthcare Corp., which runs CHC, said those five entry points are in front of the gift shop, hemodialysis, family care clinic, the administration building, and the emergency room.
According to Commonwealth Health Care Corp. spokesperson Zoe Travis, the health screening will include just having a few questions asked about your health and recent travel as you walk through the door. These questions will allow the CHC’s emergency preparedness team to continue to monitor the health of the community.
It is advised that visitors should arrive earlier at the hospital to account for the time needed for the screening.
At the airport, the Commonwealth Ports Authority has ordered the purchase of a thermal body scanner worth $35,000 to detect the body temperature of passengers arriving at the Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport. There are still no updates about when the scanner will arrive, but CPA is hoping that it will arrive as soon as possible.
Although, the full body thermal body scanner won’t stop the coronavirus from sneaking its way into the CNMI, it’s another precautionary measure that the CNMI is taking to prevent the entry of the virus.
The scanner just basically detects those who have elevated body temperatures that are not within the normal range. Since one of the symptoms of COVID-19 infection is a fever, the thermal scanner will be able to detect that.
