How will your child's university handle sick and exposed kids?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If they quarantine a student to a Covid dorm then the university is responsible for checking on them. A student can’t be isolated alone in a room with no one checking on them. All these people saying nasty things are not medical professionals and don’t understand that anyone can take a turn for the worse rapidly. If a student is isolated by themselves then someone is responsible for their welfare.

+1

This. And the college plans so far don't seem to detail what would happen day to day inside quarantine dorms other than making food delivery available and someone will "check on" them, whatever that means.

You can't expect people who are infected to always know they are getting sick, or sick people to realize fully that they are getting worse. Taking your own temperature isn't the only way to monitor for illness. And a student alone in quarantine isn't necessarily going to be as careful about things like accurate temp checks etc. as you'd think, especially if the student is starting to get sick. If infection turns to illness with Covid, it can move fast.

But PP here would say that's the student's problem to deal with on their own, because, "adults."

As I understanding it, Notre Dame will provide "monitoring supplies." Considering the word supplies is plural, it will include measurement devices beyond a thermometer, including, perhaps, pulse oximeters.

Yes, they are adults and should know if they go from having discomfort breathing and a moderate temperature to gasping for breath and chills and hot flashes from a spiking fever.

I am, however, sending my adult son to college with his own thermometer and pulse ox.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid’s college is still working out their residential plan. However, if my child was symptomatic, I would likely make the trip to pick him up. Yes, that would expose all of us, but we did it with the flu last year and we were fortunate that no one else got it. I would be willing to take that risk to make sure that he had the care he needed.

You picked up your kid for the flu? Really?

I did, and thank God I did. He ended up being admitted to the hospital overnight for observation because he was severely dehydrated from the fever and his heart was out of rhythm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid’s college is still working out their residential plan. However, if my child was symptomatic, I would likely make the trip to pick him up. Yes, that would expose all of us, but we did it with the flu last year and we were fortunate that no one else got it. I would be willing to take that risk to make sure that he had the care he needed.

You picked up your kid for the flu? Really?

I did, and thank God I did. He ended up being admitted to the hospital overnight for observation because he was severely dehydrated from the fever and his heart was out of rhythm.

And now you're going to send him back to campus where he could catch COVID, which wreaks much more havoc on the body than the flu? I pray he doesn't get it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid’s college is still working out their residential plan. However, if my child was symptomatic, I would likely make the trip to pick him up. Yes, that would expose all of us, but we did it with the flu last year and we were fortunate that no one else got it. I would be willing to take that risk to make sure that he had the care he needed.

You picked up your kid for the flu? Really?

I did, and thank God I did. He ended up being admitted to the hospital overnight for observation because he was severely dehydrated from the fever and his heart was out of rhythm.

And now you're going to send him back to campus where he could catch COVID, which wreaks much more havoc on the body than the flu? I pray he doesn't get it.

Good grief people, stop worrying so much about other people’s adult children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Notre Dame has separate buildings where students will move if they need to.

https://here.nd.edu/news/vp-of-student-affairs-hoffmann-harding-letter-on-returning-to-campus/

"While off-campus students will likely complete any necessary isolation or quarantine time in their homes, University staff will check in with these patients daily, provide monitoring supplies, and ensure the students have access to a delivery service for groceries, food, and supplies. The University has contracted with three off-campus partners for quarantine or isolation space for on-campus students and has additional apartments reserved for this purpose in a separate building of Fischer Graduate Residences. These students will also be checked on daily, provided with monitoring supplies, and delivered two daily meals prepared by Campus Dining. All isolated or quarantined students will be referred to Sara Bea Accessibility Services for accommodations and classroom support, including monitoring of exams. UHS providers will follow up with students regularly and advise when they are able to return to the classroom. Finally, the University has strong partnerships in place with both local hospitals if a student’s illness becomes severe.

The University, in partnership with local public health officials, will perform contact tracing for any infected student. Our system is intended to allow contact tracers to thoroughly identify all high-risk or close contacts, conduct timely notification of contacts to prevent further transmission, ensure resources are available for appropriate medical evaluation of any contacts who are or become symptomatic, and ensure successful quarantine or isolation of contacts during the potential time frame when they may be infectious."

More info from Notre Dame today:

https://here.nd.edu/news/message-5-on-reopening-the-university/

Dear Notre Dame Community Members:

We write to provide an update on several key health protocols at the University. The plan outlined below will supplement the extensive health and safety modifications (required face coverings, physical distancing, etc.) described in previous communications and on the Notre Dame coronavirus website. In developing these plans, we are focused on making the best possible decisions to enhance the health and safety of Notre Dame and South Bend community members.

Pre-matriculation Testing
Before returning for the fall semester (pre-matriculation), students who reside outside of St. Joseph County, as well as St. Joseph County residents who will live in Notre Dame residence halls, will undergo testing. We are working with LabCorp, a leading national provider of tests and lab services, to develop a program to distribute tests to students in late July and for University Health Services to receive the results from LabCorp before students return to campus. Any student who tests positive will be asked to refrain from returning to campus until they are medically cleared to do so.

COVID-19 Response Unit
We are creating and staffing a COVID-19 Response Unit (CRU), comprised of medically-trained and administrative personnel. The CRU will monitor daily health checks, oversee our onsite testing center, perform contact tracing for positive COVID-19 cases, manage quarantine and isolation spaces for students in partnership with student affairs, and support a hotline phone number to respond to COVID-19 inquiries. The current plan is for this CRU to launch on July 13 and to be fully operational by July 20.

Daily Health Checks
We will require all faculty, staff, and students to complete a daily health check. We have signed a contract for a software system to support these daily health checks. Health information will only be conveyed to the COVID-19 Response Unit, the Wellness Center, or University Health Services. Depending on symptoms reported, community members will be referred for a telehealth consultation and may be asked to be tested for COVID-19 and/or to refrain from coming to campus or attending class.

Onsite Testing Center
We will have an on-site testing center located at Gate D of Notre Dame Stadium for those with symptoms of COVID-19 or for those who have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive. Testing at the on-site center will be free to all currently enrolled Notre Dame students, all faculty teaching or conducting research on campus during the fall semester, and all staff who are working on campus. The campus testing site will supplement testing available to all members of the campus community through their physicians’ offices and other locations in the county

Surveillance Testing
Surveillance testing refers to the notion of randomly screening community members to assess baseline rates of infection or prior exposure to the infection, including determining rates of asymptomatic infection. We are working with relevant medical experts and our own faculty (Alex Perkins, Jenna Coalson, and Bernard Nahlen) to identify an approach to surveillance testing that would make sense for the campus. Many different approaches exist, and testing technology continues to evolve. Determining the approach Notre Dame will take for surveillance will require some further exploration, investigation, and modeling. We are grateful for the outstanding work being done by our colleagues and for the generous contribution of expert advice by so many local and national medical specialists.

Face Coverings
Current policy requires everyone to wear face coverings while on the Notre Dame campus except when alone in one’s office or private vehicle. Many have inquired about using face shields rather than masks. Face shields have been shown to protect the wearer from others, but there is no evidence of their ability to protect others from the wearer. New technology has recently been developed that allows face shields to be assessed, and we have engaged Mark McCready and David Leighton in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering to conduct such an assessment. They have begun their work already, and we look forward to seeing results in the near future.

Contact Tracing
The COVID-19 Response Team will oversee our contact tracing for any member of the Notre Dame community who tests positive for COVID-19. This means that we will methodically identify those on campus who have been in close contact with someone who tests positive for the virus, and refer those people for testing. Contact tracers will respect and adhere to best practices for patient confidentiality. Our CRU, per public health practice, will coordinate with the county health department, but will not draw on resources from the health department. We have already signed a contract for the support software we will be using. Some have raised privacy concerns, and we want to be clear that we will not be using any Bluetooth-enabled electronic notification systems as part of our contact tracing efforts. Our contact tracing software will connect directly with our daily health check system and the testing center, allowing for seamless follow up on those exhibiting symptoms and testing positive for COVID-19.

We realize the importance of these plans to the campus community and appreciate the many people who have provided input over the course of the past few months. The input and feedback has certainly strengthened our plans. We will continue to assess our plans as the understanding of the virus evolves. We continue to consult with our dedicated campus physicians, faculty experts, and other medical specialists, including infectious disease experts from the Cleveland Clinic. This plan has been endorsed by Dr. Mark Fox, the Deputy Health Director charged with managing COVID-19 for St. Joseph County. This is all very hard work, and we are very grateful for all each of you are doing.



In Notre Dame,



Thomas G. Burish, Provost

Shannon Cullinan, Executive Vice President

Erin Hoffmann Harding, Vice President for Student Affairs

Marie Lynn Miranda, Provost-Elect

[Anonymous]

My kid's school just sent a LONG list of plans. I am in the Public health field and they impressed me.

One worry I had though, is if my kid had to come home because they were sick...would I really want to get them? I am 62 and live alone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid's school just sent a LONG list of plans. I am in the Public health field and they impressed me.

One worry I had though, is if my kid had to come home because they were sick...would I really want to get them? I am 62 and live alone.

Exactly, which is why I like ND's plan...let them deal with the sick kids...keep my sick kid away from me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid's school just sent a LONG list of plans. I am in the Public health field and they impressed me.

One worry I had though, is if my kid had to come home because they were sick...would I really want to get them? I am 62 and live alone.

I don’t think colleges would insist that a student go home. Many live out of state or overseas and just can’t. All colleges will have quarantine facilities set up for mildly ill students and students who need to be hospitalized for further care will be. However, as Covid moves through communities, family, and friends, and people recover, there may be some who can care for others with minimal risk. Last year my daughter had both flu A and B, despite the vaccine. She became the food and pharmacy runner for her friends with positive flu tests after that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid's school just sent a LONG list of plans. I am in the Public health field and they impressed me.

One worry I had though, is if my kid had to come home because they were sick...would I really want to get them? I am 62 and live alone.

Exactly, which is why I like ND's plan...let them deal with the sick kids...keep my sick kid away from me.

A visual look into what ND is doing. https://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/university-of-notre-dame-s-plan-to-fully-reopen-amid-pandemic-86164037508?fbclid=IwAR3AWOmJB3bAunTi6NIEkAoMGKrwhrwLeDloQUZPaGKqF_mkG5uTPtzcCeM

[Anonymous]

Our university's policy is ridiculous. They expect no more than 2-3 dozen kids to be infected at any given time and very very few contacts (presumably based on their idea that college kids will social distance at all times). They use these very low numbers to determine the need for quarantine facilities and contact tracers. The testing they expect to be available is also insufficient to deal with any significant outbreak (the type of outbreak we'd expect from the news - with bars and parties by college age kids causing outbreaks in many parts of the US currently, only magnified via the dormitory setting). Oh and students and faculty are supposed to wipe down their tables and seats at the beginning and end of class. No additional time allowed for moving across campus between campus to allow for social distancing.
I am faculty and I am terrified.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our university's policy is ridiculous. They expect no more than 2-3 dozen kids to be infected at any given time and very very few contacts (presumably based on their idea that college kids will social distance at all times). They use these very low numbers to determine the need for quarantine facilities and contact tracers. The testing they expect to be available is also insufficient to deal with any significant outbreak (the type of outbreak we'd expect from the news - with bars and parties by college age kids causing outbreaks in many parts of the US currently, only magnified via the dormitory setting). Oh and students and faculty are supposed to wipe down their tables and seats at the beginning and end of class. No additional time allowed for moving across campus between campus to allow for social distancing.
I am faculty and I am terrified.

Call your state health department?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our university's policy is ridiculous. They expect no more than 2-3 dozen kids to be infected at any given time and very very few contacts (presumably based on their idea that college kids will social distance at all times). They use these very low numbers to determine the need for quarantine facilities and contact tracers. The testing they expect to be available is also insufficient to deal with any significant outbreak (the type of outbreak we'd expect from the news - with bars and parties by college age kids causing outbreaks in many parts of the US currently, only magnified via the dormitory setting). Oh and students and faculty are supposed to wipe down their tables and seats at the beginning and end of class. No additional time allowed for moving across campus between campus to allow for social distancing.
I am faculty and I am terrified.

Call your state health department?

Haha, they are in touch with the state health department, which has almost as much incentive as the college for local colleges to reopen (my college, like many, is a huge asset to the local economy and a major employer).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our university's policy is ridiculous. They expect no more than 2-3 dozen kids to be infected at any given time and very very few contacts (presumably based on their idea that college kids will social distance at all times). They use these very low numbers to determine the need for quarantine facilities and contact tracers. The testing they expect to be available is also insufficient to deal with any significant outbreak (the type of outbreak we'd expect from the news - with bars and parties by college age kids causing outbreaks in many parts of the US currently, only magnified via the dormitory setting). Oh and students and faculty are supposed to wipe down their tables and seats at the beginning and end of class. No additional time allowed for moving across campus between campus to allow for social distancing.
I am faculty and I am terrified.

Apply pressure through the Faculty Senate.

Anonymously threaten to publicize their name on sites like this one if they do not negotiate with faculty about precautions.

The University I work for AND my DC's university have wonderfully thought out plans. I still don't trust kids to comply, but her college has some MASTERFUL planning in place (like taking attendance at club meetings, which would lend itself to later contact tracing, if need be). They will quarantine kids who may be exposed through traveling to campus. They will test all kids and staff, encourage socializing via pods to minimize spread, forbidding kids from going to movie theaters or concerts. require masks and appointments for the laundry room. No more self-serve in the dining hall. Really, the rules go on and on. I am grateful for their hard work. NO ONE should say colleges should charge less at this time. Many of the steps they are taking will incur costs. The responsible colleges, anyway.

[Anonymous]

I hope you all realize that fall is going to be a total sh*show. Look at what is happening among young people right now. I know professors teaching online summer courses at multiple universities in very different parts of the country. They are getting emails from students who are sick/hospitalized or testing positive after a known exposure. And they aren't even on campus yet. Lots of students attend and/or work at bars/restaurants. What is going to happen when an outbreak pops up, and all of the people known to be in contact (including those who attended class with the person -- and the professor!) have to self-quarantine until they get test results back (which may very well be a false negative if they are asymptomatic or presymptomatic), and then quarantine longer if they test positive? This is going to happen over and over and over. Most college students may not get that sick, but all of the waiting for test results and quarantining is going to be so incredibly disruptive.

Colleges are terrified that students will defer or go elsewhere, so they are telling you what you want to hear. Some of the schools with really comprehensive plans might be ok. Most do not have such plans, and they will not be able to manage the large number of cases, testing and contract tracing that will be needed to get a handle on things. They are engaging in magical thinking, which is what has gotten us into this mess in the first place.

[Anonymous]

Notre Dame has an impressive plan, and I'm a skeptic about the wisdom of having students return to campus this fall.

Given all the precautions, it almost seems as though Notre Dame is running a COVID-19 health care operation with a side of college instruction thrown in as a bonus.