Tallahassee Democrat 2021 Person of the Year: FAMU COVID testing site workers

Through alpha, delta and now omicron, there’s a place people know they can count on to get accurate, reliable and speedy COVID-19 test results.

At this point in the pandemic, it’s now just referred to as “the testing site,” as if there’s only one in Tallahassee.  

The Florida A&M University COVID-19 testing site opened in April 2020 with the anticipation that it would operate for a couple of weeks. At first, the site only had the capacity to test 200 people a day.

Its solid reputation quickly grew, and while other testing sites dealt with long lines and lagging test results, FAMU persevered. At one point, people from Georgia and Alabama were driving hours to get tested in Tallahassee.

Now it’s one of the longest-running testing sites in the Southeast, and more than a half-million tests have been administered. 

More on FAMU testing site:

• 'Overwhelmed': Influenza rampant at FSU and FAMU as experts point to flu vaccine hesitancy
• As colleges near 'normal' after flu spike, Tallahassee still leads; FAMU offers COVID/flu test
• Campus and COVID: FSU, FAMU students return, hope they can stay safe
• Florida A&M testing site sees long line as COVID numbers rise in Leon County

Since 2012, the Tallahassee Democrat has awarded its Person of the Year to someone who has had a great impact on the community. But the Person of the Year for 2021 isn't just one.

The award goes to Tanya Tatum, the director of student health services at FAMU, who oversees testing and vaccinations. But it also goes to Cynthia M. Harris, associate dean for public health at FAMU.

Then there's Tracy Pleiss, the lead nurse. And the set-up crew, and the people who work registration, and the many contract nurses who have rotated in and out of the site. As many as 50 people may be working at a given time. 

The Person of the Year honor goes to all those who dedicate their time to make sure the FAMU COVID-19 testing site at 2507 Wahnish Way runs smoothly, rain or shine, Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m.-4 p.m.

2020 Person of the Year:Health care heroes on the front lines of Tallahassee's COVID-19 battle

2019 Person of the Year:FAMU football coach Willie Simmons changes lives on, off the field

The 2018 Person of the Year:The helpers in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael

A community site

Early in the pandemic, Harris was approached by President Larry Robinson about opening a testing site on campus.

At that time, there was a disparity in the number of those who were being tested in underserved communities.

Opening a site near FAMU, especially near Tallahassee’s historically Black Greater Bond neighborhood, would provide access to people who could not get to testing sites in other parts of the city.

The site started on the east side of Bragg Memorial Stadium, then moved to the west side to make room for football season and construction. But testing continued Monday through Saturday, always free with no physician referral required.

More:FAMU COVID-19 testing site reopens on Wahnish Way

COVID warrior:Dr. Temple Robinson driven to fix health care disparities in Tallahassee

Now it’s not just testing; FAMU offers COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters, too. The site has become a public health hub for the entire community, not just the area surrounding FAMU — especially during the latest omicron wave making its way through Leon County.

The site has been a magnet for people of all socioeconomic and geographic demographics, bringing many to the FAMU campus who had never set foot there.

Leon County reported 1,048 cases in the latest week. This is a 482.2% increase from the week prior, which had 180 cases. Local hospitalizations are climbing, but slowly. 

COVID in Leon County:Cases surge 482.2% as testing sites fill up

More:Tallahassee hospitals urge people to stop seeking COVID tests at ERs amid case surge

On the Monday after Christmas weekend, 1,000 tests had been administered by 10:30 a.m., Tatum said.

Last year, the Democrat recognized health care workers for their service and named them Person of the Year for 2020.

Testing site personnel are on the front lines, too. “We will be there for as long as the community wants us to be there,” Harris said.

'It's a calling'

On Tuesday, Pleiss, the lead nurse at the testing site, was multitasking her way through the morning as the line reached about 200 people deep. That morning, the site opened at 7:20 a.m. because there was already a line.

The COVID symptoms that she said she's seeing are similar to the common cold: stuffy nose, runny nose or sore throat. For people who are vaccinated, Pleiss says she's seeing much milder symptoms and faster recovery times.

On the other hand: "Even though your symptoms are mild when you go visit Grammy or celebrate New Year's, that doesn't mean it's going to affect that person the same way it affects you," she said.

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Alex Baumgartner, 29, was in line Wednesday morning to get tested because someone at his work tested positive. For a while during the pandemic, he was getting tested once a month. He estimated he's been tested about seven times just this year.

He said he gets his rapid results in 30 minutes, so he keeps coming back. "(The line) moves pretty quickly," he said. "Sometimes I just walk up and not even have to wait."

The latest omicron variant is so infectious, Tatum said, that testing is crucial: "We’re here for the community so that people can take care of themselves and take care of their families."

Tatum oversees the FAMU testing and vaccination site, but she also fills in for traffic duty, registration, set up and clean up.

“Everybody works really well as a team so we all pitch in and do what we need to do, and everybody helps pick up trash," she said, laughing.

2020 Person of the Year:Bond nurse serves Tallahassee's most vulnerable during pandemic

More:FAMU opening own COVID-19 test site for students, staff; vaccines set to arrive

FAMU has partnered with a couple of labs throughout the pandemic, Tatum said. Most recently, the testing site has partnered with Nomi Health to hire medical personnel for swabbing and testing because of the company's quick turnaround time and their willingness to use the FAMU lab, which processes results for FAMU students, faculty and staff.

FAMU's lab is the result of a partnership between the university and Thermo Fisher Scientific’s $25 million donation of diagnostic equipment, test kits and related supplies to a select group of HBCUs.

PCR tests, which detect even small amounts of the COVID-19 virus, go to either FAMU's lab or Nomi Health. Results are available within 12 to 48 hours.

Rapid tests, which look for antigens or proteins of the virus to detect COVID-19, are also available, and results come within an hour. The site also now tests for Influenza A and B for people who are symptomatic.

The streamlined process is a result of months of trial and error. Different variants mean different configurations to keep people safe. They don't want to keep people standing in line and waiting.

The mission: Come in, swab, go on your way.

“It’s a calling,” Tatum said. “Everybody that works there really is invested in trying to do the best for the community."

If you go

• COVID-19 testing and vaccinations are available at FAMU at 2507 Wahnish Way.
• To get tested, make an appointment at testing.nomihealth.com/easy_registration/113/onsite. Walk-in testing is also available. It's open 8 p.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Saturday for testing.
• Vaccinations are offered 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday at the same location. Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are available.

Contact Ana Goñi-Lessan at AGoniLessan@tallahassee.com and follow her on Twitter @goni_lessan. 

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