From Wednesday 9 February, an appointment for the PCR test in Spelhaugen must be booked in advance. Drop-in-tilbud will still be available at Festplassen.
On Wednesday, the municipality of Bergen starts PCR testing at the test station in Spelhaugen. Both drivers and pedestrians therefore have to make an advance appointment for the PCR test in Spelhaugen from 9 February.
Sometimes there were long lines
- The drop-in offer worked well, but sometimes there were long lines and long waiting times in Spelhaugen. Reservations provide a more predictable deal for residents who need a PCR test. The waiting time for a person can be significantly reduced when you have an appointment, says Beate Husa, city councilor for elderly, health and volunteering.
– Employees at municipal testing stations did a fantastic job of testing as many city residents as possible. We felt we were able to test more when we had drop-in. There are now plans to increase the use of self-tests and fewer people must have positive samples confirmed by PCR tests at testing stations. This is a good time to introduce reservations for visits to Spelhaugen, says Husa.
At Festplassen drop-in-tilbud
The municipality of Bergen continues its drop-in-tilbud offers on Festplassen for the time being. Based on the experience we will gain in the coming time, we will consider whether it might not be appropriate to make an appointment to Festplassen.
- It was the test station in Spelhaugen that had the greatest challenge with queues and long waiting times. Based on this, we are now starting booking visits to Spelhaugen to avoid this in the future. At the same time, we are running drop-in-tilbud in Festplassen to provide residents with the most flexible offer possible, says Yamil Gonzalez, head of the test line unit at the Agency for handling Covid-19.
The unit manager for the test line encourages all Bergen residents to adhere to the FHI test criteria for both the self test and the PCR.
"If there are long lines and waiting times at Festplassen, we need to figure out who we have the opportunity to test with a PCR test, and during busy times someone may be asked to come back at a later date," he says.
How to book an appointment
Bergen residents over the age of 16 can book a test class at Spelhaugen in digital form . A link to the order form will also be posted on the municipality's website. The first day of the meeting is Wednesday, February 9th. You can reserve hours that are available on the same day and two to three days later.
To use the visit booking form, citizens must log in with an electronic ID (BankID or MinID). You can make an appointment for yourself and for others in a close relationship. People who book an appointment will receive an SMS confirmation. This must be shown on arrival at the test station.
Residents who do not have the option to digitally book a visit can call the Crown number 55 56 77 00 to arrange an appointment in Spelhaugen.
No changes to the autotest offer
The municipality of Bergen does not make any changes to the self-test offer. There is still a separate queue in Festplassen and Spelhaugen. We are also continuing to hand out self-tests in the neighborhoods. In the sixth week, Bergen will receive 485 self-tests from the national authorities.
Read about the criteria for obtaining a free self-test on www.bergen.kommune.no/coronavirus/testing .
Source: Municipality of Bergen
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