If you are having difficulty breathing or are experiencing any other severe symptoms, CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY or go to Emergency at the Hospital. If your symptoms are not severe, but you do have symptoms on this list please make an appointment to get tested. You can do that by filling out the form on this page (preferred), or calling (604) 485-3572 between 9 and 11 am Monday thru Friday (excluding stat holidays).

Because we are transitioning the space at the Complex Clinic into a vaccination clinic all testing will now take place at the Medical Clinic Associates at 4794 Joyce Avenue (see map here). This drive-thru clinic is located at the rear of the Medical Clinic Associates building and can be accessed off Alberni Street. Please proceed through the back alley of the clinic following the signs posted. Please wear a mask and remain in your vehicle at all times.

Please do not use public transportation, including taxis or ride-sharing. If you are on foot, please inform the Medical Office Assistant at the time of scheduling your appointment and follow instructions provided at that time.

Please bring your health card and one piece of identification.

• SELF ISOLATE. Return home and avoid contact with others while you wait for your test result.
• If you test positive, public health will contact you.
• If you are a health care provider, please contact your employer or follow your organization's process.

• Text Message: Sign up to get a negative result by text directly to your cell phone here.
• Online: Go to myehealth.ca.
• Call: BCCDC’s COVID-19 Negative Results line (1-833-707-2792). Open from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM daily.

Please self-isolate until the following criteria are met:

• At least 10 days have passed since the start of your symptoms,
• AND your fever is gone without the use of fever-reducing medications (e.g Tylenol, Advil),
• AND you are feeling better (e.g. improvment in runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue).

If Public Health provides you with different advice, follow their instructions.

• If your symptoms worsen, contact your family doctor or nurse practitioner, or call 811.
• If you have symptoms of illness, continue to isolate until your symptoms resolve.
• If you are a healthcare provider speak with your employer about return-to-work policies.
• If you are a contact of a COVID-19 case, continue to self-isolate for 14 days from your last contact.
• If you are a traveller returning to Canada, you must continue to isolate for 14 days from the date of your arrival back in B.C.

Approximately 24-48 hours. Please self-isolate while waiting for results, and once your test result has been confirmed follow the instructions under "what should I do if I test positive?" or "what should I do if I test negative?" as appropriate.

The test begins with the patient blowing their nose and tilting their head back slightly to give the healthcare provider easy access to the nasal passageways. Once the patient’s nose is cleared, the healthcare provider inserts a long flexible swab into the patient’s nostril to collect a sample from the depths of their sinuses.

The swab goes quite deep - all the way back to the upper part of the throat behind the nose called the nasopharynx. To ensure that the sample contains enough material, the swab must remain in place for several seconds.

Although unpleasant, for most people the test is not painful. Widespread testing is considered one of the most effective defences against the pandemic.

You do not need a family doctor to get a COVID-19 test.

However, if you don’t have a primary care provider and you would like to get connected to one:

• Some clinics are accepting new patients: Call (604) 485-6261 (family doctor), (604) 485-2430 or (604) 485-9213 (nurse practitioner)
• Call (604) 485-5501 for a virtual appointment at the walk-in clinic (also accepting new patients for ongoing care by request)
• The nurse practitioner at the Tla’amin Health Centre is accepting all First Nations people in the region - call (604) 483-3009
• Texada residents, call (604) 486-7525
• Youth can visit divisionsbc.ca/pr/docs4youth

Yes, the mouth rinse and gargle test is now available to anyone getting a test in Powell River. Read our full update here. If you are bringing a child for gargle testing, please watch this short video with them so everyone knows what to expect.

To learn more about how the tests are processed watch this video from the BC Centre for Disease Control.

At the present time in BC, based on the available evidence, COVID-19 testing of asymptomatic individuals (people who don't have symptoms), outside of an outbreak scenario, is considered likely to be of low yield. Therefore this is not considered an effective use of health system resources and is not recommended. For more detailed information please see this document from the BC Centre for Disease Control (BC Ministry of Health).

If an employer requires a COVID test for an asymptomatic employee (i.e. that employee does not have any symptoms), the employer is responsible for arranging private testing. At this time the only option for self-pay testing would be in a larger community with Life Labs en route to your work site. (For example, some employers organize swabs onsite, which get shipped to private labs). Private testing avoids placing additional burden on B.C.'s public testing resources, which are in high demand due to the ongoing pandemic and record-breaking testing and infection numbers.

Employees who are tested under these circumstances are required to self-isolate until test results are available.

Please note that Public Health does not support asymptomatic testing at this time, including for work-related reasons, unless directed by a Public Health official. People having issues with employer requests, or employers who have questions, are welcome to contact us, and we can try to provide additional support.

Though travel of any kind is strongly discouraged at this time, we recognize there may be essential reasons for travel. If you require a COVID test for international travel, you can access self-pay testing directly at YVR (for more information visit yvr.ca/en/passengers/takecare/covid-19-testing) and in Vancouver en route to YVR with Life Labs that offer self-pay options.