RICHMOND, Va. -- There's a new, one-of-a-kind facility in Richmond that's designed to fight COVID-19, and take some of the burden off hospitals.
TestHere.com, VaccineHere.com, Clinical Research Partners and Infusion Solutions all partnered together to open a COVID-19 clinic inside Clinical Research Partners' Forest Drive location.
"It's a one-stop shop, basically. A COVID epicenter," explained Mike Damon, owner of TestHere.com and VaccineHere.com.
The facility offers three different kinds of COVID-19 tests, all three approved vaccines and monoclonal antibodies to treat patients who test positive for the virus.
"We are the only site I know of in Virginia that can also offer treatment options post being potentially positive," said Damon. "So if someone does come in to a facility and test positive, they are often told to go see their doctor for treatment options, but here we have multiple options to get those patients feeling better pretty quickly."
Damon and his staff are testing around 100 patients a day for COVID-19, and, since February, Clinical Research Solutions has given monoclonal antibodies to 100 patients.
The company said every person who has received the treatment reported feeling better within 24 to 48 hours.
Damon and his partners' ultimate goal is to help reduce the number of patients flooding hospitals and urgent care facilities, and to help get them everything they need in one place.
"Going to hospitals, it’s really hard to get in," explained Damon. "Going to other companies out there, the waiting lists are long and you have to wait 15 to 20 minutes just to get inside. Sometimes, you have to wait in your car. Here we have multiple rooms to get patients in for different types of treatments."
In addition to COVID testing, treatment and vaccinations, Clinical Research Partners is leading several clinical trials.
Patients who test positive for the virus have the chance to enroll in one of those, including a large scale study aimed at testing the efficacy of COVID-19 treatments, and another for Merck’s antiviral oral tablet.
Inside the facility, there are special air filtration systems to keep the space clean and to help people coming in to get tested know they’re safe.
The facility does not require an appointment and all tests, vaccinations and treatments are free.
For more information about the clinical trials, visit click here.
For testing and vaccine information, click here.