The assessment centre at Baypark. Photo / Supplied
Tauranga's Covid-19 coronavirus assessment centre's first day at Trustpower Baypark Stadium has been a success, according to organisers.
The centre, which was originally located at Tauranga Racecourse, opened its doors to the public at Baypark at 9am today. The move to Baypark, which has a greater capacity than the previous
site, was made in response to the Ministry of Health's announcement on Wednesday that the case definition for those being assessed for Covid-19 had been broadened.
"It's a case of front-footing any potential rise in the numbers seeking assessment by moving to a location which has got much greater capacity for scaling up should that be necessary," Bay of Plenty community-based health services lead Joe Bourne said in a statement.
The Baypark site could handle up to 500 assessments per day if required, he said, and the centre's first day there had gone "really well".
"We have an excellent service set up which is there to respond to anyone that has symptoms which might be linked to Covid-19 which include fever, coughing and difficulty breathing," he said.
