Members of the Iowa National Guard, working with the Iowa Department of Public Health, helped to set up a new COVID-19 test site in the northwest Iowa hamlet of Sioux Center.
The Sioux Center site is one of a number of "TestIowa" COVID-19 sites in operation since mid-April. A key concern for the TestIowa initiative includes communities that have meat processing plants and whose economy is largely dependent on agriculture or related business.
Guardsmen have been assisting local and state agencies at drive through test sites in different locations throughout the state.
This is a great opportunity to put our military training to use. It is good to help people out, help everyone stay safe and give some peace of mind."
Air Force Senior Airman Manuel Zertuche, Iowa National Guard
Air Force Senior Airman Manuel Zertuche, from the Iowa Air National Guard's 185th Air Refueling Wing in Sioux City, suited up in personal protective equipment and lended a hand at the Sioux Center site. The 2016 Sioux City East High School graduate is one of 20 guardsmen helping out there. Zertuche is a full-time student at the University of Iowa and works as a medical technician for the 185th Medical Group.
"This is a great opportunity to put our military training to use," Zertuche said. "It is good to help people out, help everyone stay safe and give some peace of mind."
The TestIowa website states that community members who suspect they have been exposed or may have signs or symptoms of COVID-19 can be tested. Once eligible, residents are directed to locations like the one in the Sioux Center middle school parking lot.
Upon arrival, guardsmen help to direct people to medical staff to receive the test. The process is as simple as rolling down their car window to submit to a quick nasal swab.
Guardsmen like Zertuche and other National Guard medics are working alongside civilian nurses and medical staff to administer the tests. The goal of the project is to help track the spread of COVID-19 throughout the state.
Each day, samples collected from around the state are sent to the Iowa Hygienic Laboratory in Coralville. The Sioux Center TestIowa COVID-19 site is the most remote location currently conducting tests.
Once the samples are delivered, they are processed to provide daily results. Officials at the Sioux Center site said the guardsmen plan to provide manning for as long as necessary.
(Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Vincent De Groot is assigned to the 185th Air Refueling Wing.)