After returning from a trip to the Eastern Cape at the weekend, I started perspiring and experiencing a bit of cough.

With sweat constantly running down my brow, I deemed it fit to head to the nearest private hospital and screen whether I had the dreaded coronavirus.

Upon my arrival, nurses at the entrance door of Garden City Hospital were armed with sanitisers. They posed routine questions to people entering the hospital.

"When was the last time you travelled overseas?" she asked, looking straight into my eyes.

"I'm actually here to test for coronavirus. I had travelled to the Eastern Cape at the weekend," I responded.

She asked further questions like the type of illness symptoms I have been experiencing recently and the number of days I spent in the Eastern Cape.

Those who passed the questions were given orange stickers to freely enter the hospital.

I was not so lucky, though. They checked my temperature level and it was found to be fine. I was then taken to a waiting room.

Eight minutes later, I was called into a room where there were two nurses so that I could be tested. One took my blood pressure, height and weight.

The other nurse asked routine questions like if I had been experiencing pain and when did I  last cough.

Both nurses were not wearing masks, raising fears their lives could be in danger if they came into contact with a coronavirus-infected person.

What impressed me, though, was that the service was carried out without me being charged. I heaved  a sigh of relief when the nurse came back with the news that I had been cleared. The speed and efficiency with which the tests were conducted is also something to be applauded.

It's better to know one's status than not.