CARSON CITY – The Carson City Library continues to adapt to the changing needs of the community – this time by turning their 3D printers into producing COVID-19 nasal test swabs for northern Nevada.
It took just four days for Tod Colegrove, PhD, MSLIS, director of the Carson City Library, to pull together a team and start printing nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs to aid in the coronavirus (COVID-19) testing after receiving a call from the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services and Carson City Department of Health and Human Services.
“Libraries aren’t just about books and magazines anymore,” said Colegrove. “Libraries are places that align with the needs of their communities, including the more urgent needs we’re seeing now. From virtual reality to 3D printing and everything in between, we’re working to encourage involvement in STEM and to grow opportunities for our next generation. As a result, we were also in the perfect position to help the communities we serve when they needed it most.”
As the COVID-19 pandemic closed business, the library shifted its focus to providing digital services and doing what it could to help support and defend its community from the onslaught of the virus. Just days earlier, those same library 3D printers had been enlisted to produce much needed personal protective equipment (PPE), such as face shields.
Today, one printer is producing over 500 nasal swabs daily. Combined with the printers at the University of Nevada, Reno Innevation Center, the team is providing over 1,000 of the testing swabs every day.
“It may sound trite, but we’ve seen first-hand how libraries change lives. With the Library producing PPE and the nasal swabs, we’re stepping up to do what we can to make a difference and help save lives,” said Colegrove.
For more information on the library’s other digital services, visit www.carsoncitylibrary.org.
