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April 30, 2020

Antibody Testing Begins with Health Care Workers, First Responders in Tucson

A new use for a practice field, testing is conducted in this climate controlled temporary clinic set up inside the Cole and Jeannie Davis Sports Center.
A new use for a practice field, testing is conducted in this climate controlled temporary clinic set up inside the Cole and Jeannie Davis Sports Center.

On April 30, the University of Arizona and the state of Arizona began an effort to test all frontline health care workers and first responders for antibodies to the virus that causes COVID-19. The first group includes 4,500 Pima County residents who are first responders, health care workers, and some members of the general public. The test will determine who has been exposed to the novel coronavirus and may have developed antibodies to protect against it. All individuals tested in phase 1 registered online and were required to wear a mask and have their temperature checked upon entry of the temporary clinic set up inside Tucson’s Cole and Jeannie Davis Sports Center. Testing for health care workers and first responders will expand to the remainder of the state on May 7; in total, 250,000 health care workers and first responders will be tested in Arizona. Read more about the test.

Frontline workers and first responders are among the first to receive a COVID-19 antibody test in the temporary clinic set up inside the Cole and Jeannie Davis Sports Center.
Upon arrival at the testing facility, all individuals are required to wear a mask, and have their temperature checked by health care personnel.
A new use for a practice field, testing is conducted in this climate controlled temporary clinic set up inside the Cole and Jeannie Davis Sports Center on the University of Arizona main campus.
Tucson-area police officers are among the first to receive the antibody test that will determine who has been exposed to the novel coronavirus and may have developed antibodies to protect against it.
A health care worker examines a vial of blood that will be sent to a lab to be tested.
A health care worker labels a sample after collection.
Health care workers assist with blood sample collection. More than 4,500 people are scheduled to have their blood drawn in the first few days of testing.
A Tucson-area police officer waits to be called to give a blood sample for the antibody test.
While those tested primarily include frontline workers and health care workers, an additional 1,500 members of the public in Pima County, including some University of Arizona staff and students, will be tested in this first phase.
A police officer prepares for the antibody test, consisting of a blood draw.
A health care worker prepares to apply a bandage to a police officer who has been tested.
Blood samples are gathered from the first phase of testing in a partnership between the University of Arizona and the state.
Among the essential workers receiving antibody tests, Aaron Barnes, PsyD CAPS Assistant Director of Campus Health. Barnes provides his name to health care worker before testing.
First responders and health care staff wait for their turn to be tested.
Most people who are infected by the virus make antibodies within a few weeks of infection. The amount of antibodies varies among individuals.
Police officers wait in line to submit samples to determine whether they have antibodies to COVID-19.
Banner Healthcare workers gather to review charts. The University of Arizona plans to provide antibody blood testing for most of its 45,000 students and 15,000 employees with separate funding.
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