S. Taiwan city rolls out ‘container’ sample collection station for coronavirus

台灣南部城市推出“貨櫃”冠狀病毒樣本採檢站

Container remodeled to become mobile station for sample collection in Tainan


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The southern city of Tainan in Taiwan has launched a mobile sample collection station for coronavirus (COVID-19) testing that is touted as safer and more efficient.

The station, repurposed from a container, can be quickly assembled and moved around to places with testing needs. Comprising four individual units with separate areas for medics collecting samples as well as individuals having their samples taken, the station will help reduce transmission risks.

The outdoor mobile station is also fitted with UV light disinfection equipment for better sterilization. The first such device was installed at the campus of the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) Tainan Hospital.

Receiving a nasal swab test through a transparent partition, Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) became the first visitor on Thursday (April 23). The station has the capacity to perform 24 tests an hour, with each taking about ten minutes including disinfection, wrote CNA.

As the process involves almost no direct contact, hazmat suits are not required, thus helping cut down on the use of limited resources. The service will be expanded to more hospitals to relieve the burden on the medical system, Huang noted.