Drive-through clinic among four sites set to meet Shepparton COVID-19 testing demand

Shepparton Respiratory Clinic at Princess Park Clinic will also offer testing by appointment only, extending its service to include asymptomatic testing.

Opening hours at the clinic will also be extended until 8pm.

A pop-up testing site will once again be set up at the Shepparton Showgrounds' McIntosh Centre, open from 8 am to 5.30 pm.

People can also be tested at the GV Health Acute Respiratory Clinic at Graham St, Shepparton, which will be open from 8 am to 5.30 pm.

The Ballarat Rapid Response team and ADF will also be available to provide additional support on the ground.

Shepparton’s demand for COVID-19 testing went through the roof today, with hundreds flocking to the city’s testing sites after the recent coronavirus outbreak.

Patrons of both Goulburn Valley Health and the Shepparton Showgrounds’ pop-up testing sites experienced lengthy waits, with police informing people they might have to stand in line for six hours.

Police asked hundreds of people to leave the lines and go home, many of whom had spent more than four hours queuing for a test.

But for many, little choice existed but to brave the heat and continue queuing so they could resume their normal lives, with Bunnings merchandiser Cynthia Vesty, 32, settling in for a near six-hour wait.

“I drove past the hospital and saw how ridiculous the line was and decided to come straight here (the Showgrounds),” she said.

“The wait is irrelevant; I can’t go back to work until I’ve been tested and the kids can’t go back to school. It’s definitely better knowing than not knowing.”

Goulburn Valley Health chief executive Matt Sharp insisted his organisation would monitor the queues to ensure they remained COVID-safe, but many locals reported 1.5m of social distancing and mask usage were not apparent.

Karen Fairless, 56, was concerned not everyone seemed to be doing the right thing.

“There’s plenty of face masks underneath noses when you’re in a line being tested for COVID, that’s surprising to me,” she said.

“And no-one seems to be addressing it — that’s very disappointing. You’d think if you were going to be vigilant anywhere it would be here.”

With the Showgrounds site only processing 30 tests per hour, Tatura’s Mark Pell was one of many who endured a long wait.

“Considering the volume of people here in from out of town, that’s written off the whole day for me. So to get turned around now without being tested would be pretty annoying,” he said.

“I think if a parking inspector rocked up right now he’d get lynched.”

Around 3 pm, GV Health announced both its testing sites were at full capacity.

Those who were sent home, or did not want to queue for a test, are urged to self-isolate before being tested as soon as possible.

Mr Sharp said the local health service had mobilised the team that supported Kilmore through its outbreak, and also called in additional neighbouring health services from as far as Wangaratta to provide support.

Mr Sharp said he expected several hundred if not a "few thousand" people in the next few days would come forward for testing.

“Some of (the high-risk locations) have a high volume of people moving through those locations, so it’s quite possible there will be a large number of people getting tested," he said.

“The thing with this outbreak is people need to keep those basic things in their minds, like maintaining physical distancing of 1.5m, coming forward and getting tested as soon as they have any symptoms of COVID-19 no matter how mild."

Mr Sharp said he expected all those being tested to maintain 1.5m apart and wear masks while in line.

“We can do so much as a health service,” he said.

“But individual members of the community need to remember those basic things.”