The Quinte West Chamber of Commerce is happy to support its business community with the distribution of 3,725 Free Rapid Antigen Screening tests to date and more than 11,500 masks, generously donated by chamber member NRZ Safety Inc. As more Ontario businesses open under Step 3 of the Roadmap to Reopen, the rapid tests allow workspaces to provide enhanced screening to boost consumer confidence.
The Quinte West Chamber has signed up 53 businesses to the COVID-19 Rapid Screening Initiative so far, a program in partnership with the Ontario and Canadian government to provide free Rapid Antigen Screening Kits to small and medium-sizes businesses. This program is open to all businesses under 150 employees in the region.
The goal of the program is to help businesses identify employees who are asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic with COVID-19 to prevent them from spreading the virus in the workplace, at home and in the community. Vaccinated people can still become infected with the virus and may have no or only mild symptoms themselves. Vaccination reduces the risk but doesn’t fully prevent individuals from passing on the virus.
“These test kits have enabled employers to provide a safe workplace without the worry of Covid-19 being spread by a co-worker who is asymptomatic,” states Suzanne Andrews, CEO at the Quinte West Chamber of Commerce. “As more employees get vaccinated it is important to continue this extra level of screening to identify if the virus is in the workplace. It also gives customers and clients greater confidence to enter a business that is actively screening their employees.”
The Quinte West Chamber is dedicated to serving its members through advocacy and the provision of services. Supporting businesses with these essential resources during the pandemic is one way the Chamber continues to encourage the economic and social development of Quinte West as the province continues the reopening Ontario roadmap.
The City of Quinte West has sponsored the Rapid Antigen Screening program by covering the costs of the biohazard pick up from the Quinte West Chamber of Commerce by Stericycle. This allows businesses to return the used test pads and test tubes back to the Chamber in a biomedical container for proper collection and disposal.
Visit rapidtests.quintewestchamber.ca to learn more about the program and to utilize the website as a one-stop-shop. Once logged in, businesses can sign the agreement, watch the training video and place an order in one place.
Screening kits can be scheduled for pickup on Tuesday and Thursdays at the Quinte West Chamber of Commerce building at 97 Front Street, Trenton. To request masks, contact the Chamber at 613-392-7635.
