SUDBURY -- HSN’s COVID-19 Assessment Centre is moving from the Health Sciences North Research Institute to a new location in the south end of Sudbury at 2050 Regent St., next to Buzzy Brown’s Brasserie, and across from the South End Public Library.

Patients booked for testing appointments will begin going to the new site to be tested on Nov. 19.

The new location will allow for an improved approach to testing with the arrival of cold and snowy winter weather.

“The bulk of the tests at our COVID-19 Assessment Centre are done by drive-thru testing, which takes place outside," Mark Hartman, senior vice-president of patient Experience at HSN, said in a news release Tuesday.

"This approach has been really effective and efficient as it allows us to test the most people in the safest way possible. But in order to continue with this approach during the cold winter months, we needed an area that will provide some shelter to staff and patients."

“I’m really excited about the new site," Nicole Sykes, manager of HSN’s COVID-19 Assessment Centre, said in the release. "It has two garage doors, which means patients will be able to drive in to the building and stay in their vehicles to be swabbed. There will still be plenty of airflow, which maintains safety, but our staff will be able to keep warm and not get covered in snow while doing the testing.”

Despite moving to a new location, the process for getting tested for COVID-19 remains the same. Walk-ins are not allowed. Patients will need to book an appointment to be tested either by filling out a form at www.hsnsudbury.ca or by calling 705-671-7373. They will be referred to the new HSN site or to NEOMO or Primacy Clinics for testing.

Staff with the COVID-19 Assessment Centre will provide clear directions to patients on how to access the new site when they call to book their appointments. When going to the new site for testing, patients are asked to enter the new site via the lights at Regent Street and Old Burwash Road, next to Buzzy Brown’s Brasserie.

HSN’s COVID-19 Assessment Centre averaged more than 250 tests per day from August to the end of October, peaking at more than 600 tests per day in the fall.

It’s expected that HSN will continue to offer testing at the new location throughout the remainder of the pandemic.