Health boards in Scotland have started to extend testing for coronavirus , including drive-through trials.
NHS Lothian is the latest health board where patients with mild symptoms drive themselves to a contained area of the hospital for testing, enabling them to avoid public transport or walking.
Other areas are running community testing, which allows people to be tested in their own home where appropriate.
This involves staff from public health teams attending people’s homes in protective suits to provide testing, and offer advice to anyone displaying symptoms.
It follows the introduction of specialised coronavirus screening laboratories in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
A total of 500 Scottish tests have been carried out all of which are negative. One British man has died after contracting the deadly virus on board the Diamond Princess cruise ship.
Chief Medical Officer Dr Catherine Calderwood said: “Although all test results have come back negative so far, it is only a matter of time before there is a positive case in Scotland.
“Our priority is to ensure testing facilities are available across Scotland, so we have asked health boards to explore options for people in their area depending on their needs. Methods of testing will be different depending on factors like population and geography.
“Scotland is well-prepared to deal with coronavirus. We need the public to help contain spread by keeping themselves informed of the latest health and travel advice, and taking basic hygiene precautions such as hand-washing, not touching their face and covering their nose and mouth with a tissue when coughing or sneezing and binning the tissue straight away.
