On Sept. 4, students, faculty and staff received an email from the Office of the President describing a new community health campaign: the COVID-19 testing initiative.
The initiative implements an opt-in design where interested students and faculty volunteer to sign a consent form to participate in the initiative.
Upon signing the consent form, volunteers will be added to a pool in which roughly 25 participants will be randomly selected for testing each day on a Monday through Friday schedule.
If selected, the student is asked to make an appointment with ETSU’s health services to be tested for the virus. Students are encouraged to make an appointment through ETSU’s Patient Portal or by calling the health center at (423) 439-4225.
It is possible for students to be selected more than once during the semester-long initiative. However, an individual should not be tested more than once every 14 days, as that is the standard incubation period for the virus before it is detectable.
The opt-in testing is designed for asymptomatic students; that is, students who are not showing any noticeable symptoms of the virus.
The goal of the initiative is surveillance-based.
“We’re not asking those students to quarantine,” said center manager Vanessa Smith. “It’s just for surveillance.”
If an opt-in student is showing symptoms, the student will be asked to see their primary healthcare provider for treatment.
The initiative will help ETSU monitor the number of outbreaks on and around campus.
“It’s to keep a better handle on what the temperature is like on our campus,” said Smith. “This helps us stay ahead of the game.”
The data collected through the initiative will also contribute to campus decisions.
“As far as within the next few months, it’s keeping us abreast of what is going on around here and around campus to make those decisions to keep our community safe and out of harms way as much as possible,” Smith said.
Ultimately, the University Health Center is available to the community.
“If there is ever a concern, I want everyone to know that we are here, we’re testing, we’re seeing patients,” Smith said. “Just give us a call. Reach out to us.”
