To address the need for COVID-19 testing in urban areas for those without vehicles, CannonDesign architect Albert Rhee created a walk-in testing booth that is slated for public use.
Coronavirus testing operations are often the first physical point-of-contact between a healthcare provider and patient, bringing with it an inherent risk of transmission. Large drive-thru testing operations have proven effective in limiting provider-patient exposure and accelerating test administration in the United States. But this form of testing requires significant PPE supplies for testing center staff and administrators. It also presents accessibility challenges for communities where large segments of the population don’t have access to a vehicle.
A walk-in testing booth provides an alternative solution that eliminates physical provider-patient exposure in a modular format that is simple to deploy for temporary testing operations. The design is based on testing operations already in place at Yang Ji General Hospital in Seoul, South Korea. Similar solutions have emerged throughout the world, but design development and production seem to be limited to single-user, single-site applications.
American practice CannonDesign developed a drawing set for the modular system to establish a universal basis of design for broad-scale production and implementation of these walk-in testing booths. The booth system can be deployed on virtually any flat, outdoor surface and be powered by a single household electrical outlet. The dual-booth system is designed to accommodate alternating patient flow. While one booth is occupied by a patient, the adjacent booth can undergo a 10-minute disinfection process in preparation for the next patient.
The resulting, in-progress design guidance documents are a collaboration between Albert Rhee and Buffalo-based mechanical engineer, Raymond Shultz, PE. Together, they hope these ideas will help the response to COVID-19.