Where to get a Covid Test in Kenya, Africa
Do you have an upcoming trip to the USA from Kenya and are wondering where to get a Covid test in Kenya? Well, keep reading. I will share my experience and answer questions about the whole process for a better experience as you prepare for your international trip.
In my case, I traveled to the United States from Kenya during the Covid-19 pandemic This is based on my experience and it might be different from yours.
Option One. You can get a Covid-19 test done at a public hospital, but here is a catch. The results may take 3-4 days to come back. At least this is what I was told when I visited the Rift Valley Provincial General Hospital in Nakuru, Kenya. So, this isn’t an option for most forks traveling international and need results within 96 hours since the sample collection.
Option Two. Get the Covid-19 test done at a private hospital, which is what I did. You may be thinking, what a financial loss to the public hospitals for not offering this service. I’ve had the same conversation with other like-minded people. I wrote a blog post on the lack of awareness of medical services and how African diaspora can be (are) potential clients as it relates to medical tourism. That’s discussion for another day.
I googled Aga Khan Hospital in Nakuru, got their number, tried calling several times but no one answered. So, to save time, don’t try calling as it will keep on ringing with no answer.
Finally, I made my way to the Aga Khan Hospital branch in Nakuru. I was told they do the Covid tests only in Nairobi and that the results take 24 hours to come back. So, a day before my flight, I travelled from Nakuru to Nairobi and arrived at the Aga Khan hospital in Parklands at 8:30 in the morning. You can only imagine the time I woke up and started the 2 ½-hour trip.
I parked at the main hospital parking lot, walked toward the main entrance, and was told by the security guards, Covid tests were done next door. So, I walked next door and found an outside seating area under a tent where chairs were nicely spaced to observe physical distancing. And this is where, I would say the Aga Khan Hospital Parklands Covid-19 team could do a better job of having clear directions, so people/patients know what to do and expect as there was no one checking people in.
Upon arrival, I had to guess which documents to fill out and didn’t know what protocols to observe. Later, I found out that I needed to fill out two separate documents, then hand the paperwork back. I was holding on to mine (aka wasting time), because I was thinking less contact is what most people are practicing. John, I believe his name was, collected all the documents and I had to wait until my name was called. There was a “mix up” of documents which I will address on my YouTube video (I will insert link here later) because it seemed to happen to only certain people!
Once your name gets called, head over to the desk and confirm your information. Then you make a payment of Ksh. 8,500 ($85). After payment has been received via Mpesa (might even be accepting cash or cards) you would get a receipt and a number to call if you haven’t been contacted after 24 hours for your results. Then it’s time to wait for your final stop where the sample would be collected.
My name was finally called by a healthcare provider who would double-check my details and explain what to expect of the sample collection process. Surprisingly, they swap only one nostril. It wasn’t painful, just uncomfortable. That’s it, you are good to go.
Since, I had made this long trip to Nairobi, I decided to get my hair done at Kenyatta Market. If you haven’t been there, I would suggest stall # 97. They did a fantastic job.
After getting the Covid-19 test done in Kenya, 24 hours later I got a text message that my results were out and to call a certain number for the next step. Once I called the number, I was given a choice of whether I wanted to pick up my Covid-19 negative test result certificate or have it sent by email. I choose to go with my email address and within minutes, I had the negative test results in my email box.
Please note, I was not asked to present my negative Covid-19 test results upon entrance to the USA. This was rather interesting. I wonder if it had anything to do with the destinations travelled, highly likely. My flight back to America from Kenya was on Qatar Airways. I flew from Nairobi to Doha, Doha to Chicago, then Chicago to Seattle. I WASN’T asked to present of my Covid negative test results on my return flights to the USA. Anyway, I hope you find this blog post, where to get a Covid Test in Kenya, helpful and I wish you safe travels.
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