Piedmont shares tips for cold, flu season

Spencer Smith, a certified physician assistant at Piedmont Urgent Care, said there has been an uptick in sickness.

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — Piedmont is sharing tips for cold and flu season as fall and winter approach.

Spencer Smith, a certified physician assistant at Piedmont Urgent Care, said there has been an uptick in sickness.

“We see an uptick in viruses and bacterias and things like that,” Smith said. “We have a lot of volume.”

Smith said Piedmont Urgent Care uses PCR testing, which he called the gold standard. He added that PCR testing helps determine what a patient is feeling and how to treat it.

Smith said PCR testing is more accurate than using a rapid test.

“It looks at the DNA or the RNA to find out exactly what’s causing it where the rapid test only looks on the surface,” Smith said.