OU College of Nursing Hosts Drive-Thru COVID-19 Testing Site

NORMAN, OKLA. – The Fran and Earl Ziegler College of Nursing at the University of Oklahoma, in collaboration with the Oklahoma State Department of Health, is offering drive-thru COVID-19 testing. The site is located in the circle drive on the west side of the College of Nursing, 1100 N. Stonewall Ave. in Oklahoma City.

Tests will be administered by volunteer faculty, staff, students and alumni from the OU College of Nursing.

“Having the College of Nursing assume the responsibility for the Oklahoma State Department of Health COVID testing tent on the OUHSC campus provided us with a great opportunity to showcase the value of nursing in protecting the public’s health,” said Julie Hoff, dean of the OU College of Nursing. “It is also providing our undergraduate and graduate students with clinical learning opportunities to advance their knowledge and understanding of the role of nursing in a pandemic. Our students are getting 1:1 interaction with registered nurses and advanced practice nurses, learning to test subjects, report results, and teach about the prevention and management of COVID-19. To support this initiative, faculty, staff, students and alumni will come together over the next six weeks to deliver this service on primarily a volunteer basis. Having nurses come together to provide this important service highlights OU nurses – as we say, ‘We are OU nursing.’”

OKC Testing will be available by appointment only from 8:30 a.m. – 3 p.m. Monday through Friday through July 31. Individuals wanting to be tested do not need to be experiencing symptoms of COVID-19. To arrange a testing appointment, call the OU College of Nursing hotline at (405) 271-7774.  For Tulsa, testing by appointment only from 8:30 a.m. - 3 p.m. Monday through Thursday on the OU-Tulsa Schusterman campus in the parking garage and 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. Friday only at the Wayman Tisdale Specialty Health Clinic, call OU College of Nursing hotline at (918) 619-4980. 

Approximately 60-70 tests will be performed each day, and specimens will be stored appropriately and collected by the health department, which will transport them to labs for testing. Individuals will be notified of results by their local health department.

For more information, email OU Nursing clinical instructor Teri Murphy, MSN, MPH, RN-BC, PHCNS-BC, at Theresa-Murphy@ouhsc.edu or OU Nursing clinical assistant professor Amy Hutchens, Ph.D., RN, CNE, at Amy-Hutchens@ouhsc.edu for OKC and faculty Vernita Alexander, MS, RN, at Vernita-Alexander@ouhsc.edu and Interim Asst. Dean - Tulsa Campus, Emma Kientz, DNP, MS, APRN-CNS, CNE, Emma-Kientz@ouhsc.edu for Tulsa questions.  OU Nursing alumni are encouraged to volunteer and can contact either OKC or Tulsa contacts to learn more. 

About the University of Oklahoma
Founded in 1890, the University of Oklahoma is a public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. OU serves the educational, cultural, economic and health care needs of the state, region and nation. For more information visit www.ou.edu.

About the Fran and Earl Ziegler College of Nursing

The Fran and Earl Ziegler College of Nursing, located on the OU Health Sciences Center campus in Oklahoma City, is the largest nursing school in the state, known for its excellent community outreach program, cutting-edge research and high-quality clinical nursing instruction. It administers more than 20 scholarships, awarded in both spring and fall. The OU Health Sciences Center is the largest concentration of health care providers in the state.