To address the rapid rise in COVID-19 infections and minimize fatalities in Southern Nevada, health care workers and industry experts say there is more than one challenge at play — and more than one solution.

Health care workers with the UNLV School of Medicine tests a patient for the coronavirus at a drive thru testing site Tuesday, March 24, 2020, in Las Vegas. UNLV Medicine, the clinical arm of the UNLV School of Medicine, started conducting COVID-19 testing by appointment for people who meet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.

The UNLV School of Medicine conducted 236 COVID-19 tests on March 26 alone, according to spokesman Paul Joncich. The school’s call center has been inundated with 2 to 3,000 inquiries a day since curbside testing began.

When Dr. Fermin Leguen became the Southern Nevada Health District’s acting chief health officer last fall, nobody could have predicted how recognizable his name would become to Southern Nevadans just months later.

When Dr. Fermin Leguen became the Southern Nevada Health District’s acting chief health officer last fall, nobody could have predicted how recognizable his name would become to Southern Nevadans just months later.

Six weeks into coronavirus testing, Nevada health officials still don’t have enough kits to track the spread of the disease and hopefully slow the outbreak.

Six weeks into coronavirus testing, Nevada health officials still don’t have enough kits to track the spread of the disease and hopefully slow the outbreak.

UNLV Medicine has received approximately 2,000 calls per day from Las Vegas residents seeking a test for COVID-19 since curbside testing was announced Tuesday, according to a spokesperson.

The CDC and Southern Nevada Health District are telling us to stay home, even if we’re sick. Unless we have a high fever, worsening cough, and difficulty breathing — the symptoms of COVID-19 — the best course of action is to call our doctor; if an exam is necessary, make it virtual. That means a lot of people will be staying home sick.

Nevada is one of several states permitted to fast track coronavirus testing by developing and approving it without the FDA signing off. While that’s underway, testing is still limited in the Las Vegas Valley.

UNLV Medicine, the clinical arm of the school of medicine, has started offering curbside testing for coronavirus by appointment only.

The UNLV School of Medicine’s clinical arm will be conducting curbside testing for COVID-119 beginning on Tuesday, March 24.