To Our Graduate and Professional Students:
As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches next week, we wanted to make sure you are aware of preventive health measures available to you—as well as additional recommendations to reduce infection risk.
COVID-19 Exit Testing: You still can schedule appointments online or walk in to our testing center in the track area of the Veale Convocation, Recreation and Athletic Center (walk-in testing ends 20 minutes before closing each day). For more information, please visit our COVID-19 Surveillance Testing page.
Flu Shots: If you have not gotten your flu shot yet, you have two more opportunities—tomorrow and Thursday morning in the track area of the Veale Center. The vaccination is free and reduces your chances of catching the flu (or, if you do, having to see a doctor or be hospitalized).
Travel: If you are leaving Ohio, be sure to check the entry requirements of your destination state or country, as well as any documentation you may need to provide to airlines or other transportation services. University Health and Counseling Services offers other travel tips on its website.
Arrival: When seeing friends or family after a long absence, people often embrace or, at the least, shake hands. For your health and theirs, you should skip that ritual this year. Ideally students would quarantine for 14 days after getting home, but not every living situation can allow such separations. That said, each preventive measure helps; consider at least a few days of separation within the home or, if you must be in the same rooms, be especially vigilant about wearing masks, maintaining distance, and frequently washing your hands.
Gatherings: With COVID-19 case counts spiking across much of the country, a negative exit test here does not mean that you will remain virus-free by the time you reach your destination. Plus, the more people with whom you interact while there, the greater the chance that you will infect them, or vice versa. Please consider these risks as you decide how to spend your time next week, especially with regard to people considered to be at higher risk from COVID-19.
If you cannot avoid observing Thanksgiving this year, you may want to review this recent guidance from the Centers for Disease Control.
Returning to Campus after Thanksgiving: All students who expect to be on campus will need to participate in re-entry testing starting Monday, Nov. 30; those who traveled and/or participated in gatherings may have to complete additional requirements. We will provide more details early next week.
As always, thank you for all that you have done to keep one another healthy and safe during this difficult semester.
Sara Lee, MD
Executive Director of University Health and Counseling Services
Lou Stark
Vice President for Student Affairs