Eagleby COVID drive-through closes after lack of patients, local abuse

A COVID drive-through centre at a popular Brisbane southside shopping centre has shut up shop after a lack of patients.

The vacant drive-through fever clinic outside the Eagle Tavern at Eagleby had a negative result with a local cafe and with residents who failed to show up.

A COVID drive-through centre at a popular southside shopping centre has tested negative with patients, chalking up so few customers it packed up after three days.

COVID DRIVE-THROUGH TEST CLINIC

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TRIO TO FACE COURT OVER BORDER BREACH

SECOND LOGAN TRIO BUSTED AT BORDER

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GO STRAIGHT HOME, COVID COFFEE DRIVE-THROUGH

The free testing clinic was set up in the Eagleby Shopping Plaza carpark on Wednesday but by Friday, it was gone after testing less than 50 people.

The pop-up drive-through, in front of the Eagle Tavern, was 10km from where crowds of hundreds lined up for more than four hours over four days at Logan Hospital to be tested for the deadly virus.

Staff at the drive-through were also subjected to abuse from a local business owner, who told them it had driven down customers at a nearby cafe.

The organiser of the drive-through, Medlab general manager Mannu Kala, said he was surprised at the drop off but put it down to the passing of the peak period of concern and the two infected women not visiting Eagleby.

Organiser of the drive-through Medlab general manager Mannu Kala said he was surprised but put it down to the passing of the peak period of concern and the two infected women not visiting Eagleby

He said the real hot spots in the southeast for testing were still at Park Ridge, Browns Plains, Woodridge and Ipswich.

“The Eagleby community wasn't that keen to get tested because those two girls had not been in the area,” he said.

“I have testing sites at Logan Central, Browns Plains and Park Ridge where the two women had been and we were testing between 300 and 400 people a day in the period just after the two women tested positive.

“In a week at Browns Plains we tested 4400 people – so we thought Eagleby (20km away) would be a good spot to set up.

“But because people had to get referrals from doctors to get tested at Eagleby that seemed to deter people and slow things down.”

Mr Kala said he could ramp up the drive-through clinic at Eagleby within hours if needed.

Initial reports said patrons at the neighbouring Eagle Tavern also complained about the pop-up test site.

But pub manager Glen McWilliams said management was glad the drive-through had been set up in the next-door carpark.

Eagleby general practitioner Dr Thomas Lyons blamed a federal government condition barring private patients from over-the-phone referrals if they had not visited a GP in the past year.

Dr Thomas Lyons said the federal government was ‘cost shifting’ COVID testing to the state government.

Patients who have not seen a GP in 12 months can only be tested at state government facilities including the often overcrowded pop-up centres at Parklands Christian College, and at Logan and QEII hospitals.

There have been 638,011 tests conducted in Queensland since testing started in March at clinics operated by Hospital and Health Services.

Respiratory Clinics are commissioned by the federal government but run by the local health services.