She Strengthens

A Safe Return Home: My Experience with At-Home COVID Testing

As the pandemic continues to shape our daily lives, many companies have taken a cautious approach, telling employees not to expect a return to the office until January 2021 at the earliest. However, my company has been more optimistic, announcing that we wouldn’t be expected to return until October 1st, 2020. With this news, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity and return home to the East Coast.

Concerns about Contracting the Virus

My primary concern was contracting the coronavirus during my journey and inadvertently passing it on to my family. While drive-thru testing was widely available in my parents’ suburb, I wasn’t comfortable sitting in their car or taking an Uber to get tested. This led me to research alternative methods to get tested.

Discovering the Easiest Way to Get Tested

It turns out that the easiest way to get tested is to request an at-home testing kit through LabCorp. The kit is covered under most insurance plans, or costs $119 otherwise. You simply fill out a quick online survey, detailing your potential exposure to the virus, and LabCorp sends you a compact kit to the specified address.

Quarantining and Testing

I quarantined for 4-5 days before taking the test, ensuring that the kit had arrived and was in my designated room before I arrived home. The advice on when to get tested after a potential exposure varies, but I decided to test myself on the fourth day after my flight. The testing process was easy: I registered my kit online, detailing the time I was planning to take the nasal sample.

The Testing Process

Inside the kit, I found detailed instructions that asked me to remove the cotton swab, insert it slightly up each nostril, turning it three times to collect the sample, and then placing the cotton swab face-down in the test tube provided. I then packed my test tube in the materials provided, including a pre-stamped FedEx box. After sealing the package, my parents drove less than five minutes to drop off my package, which I was able to track online.

Receiving My Results

From the moment LabCorp received my kit, it took less than 24 hours for me to receive my results. Although it did take almost 24 hours for them to receive my kit, despite the FedEx Express Shipping included. I was impressed by this system and wish there had been more information available about this kit when I was researching coronavirus testing methods.

A Better Experience

In total, I was only in quarantine for about six days before receiving my negative result, which was a much better experience than a full two weeks. This allowed me to spend more time with my family and further ensure their safety. Hopefully, my experience with this kit will help others get tested from the safety and comfort of their own home.