The realities of quarantining on campus

ETSU has a solid system for testing and quarantining students with symptoms of COVID-19 who live on campus. I know because I went through it.

I woke up on Sept. 16 with a dry cough, a headache and a runny nose. As someone who lives on campus and works in retail off campus, even with social distancing guidelines in effect, I come into contact with dozens of people a day.

I had not knowingly been exposed to anyone with COVID-19, and my symptoms were mild, so I knew the chance that I had COVID-19 was slim, but I did not want to be the guy in the zombie movie who gets bitten and keeps it a secret, so I called the University Health Center to set up an appointment to get tested anyway.

The University Health Center set up a virtual appointment with me and I was able to get an appointment quickly. My appointment was approximately an hour and a half after my original call. The nurse practitioner asked me some questions about my symptoms and exposure and scheduled my COVID-19 test for later in the afternoon. She also told me I needed to inform housing that I was being tested.

There were two options for arriving at the clinic to take the test. I could drive to the clinic and park in one of the designated parking spots. From there, I would call and let the clinic know I arrived, and they would come out and perform the nasal swab in my car. The other option was to walk into the clinic at my designated time, and I would be taken to an examination room where the nasal swab would be performed. I was told the test results could take five to seven days to come back, but they would most likely be back within the next three days.

When I called housing, a staff member took down my information. Students who live in single-occupancy residence halls, which are all the residence halls on campus except for Centennial Hall and Buccaneer Ridge, are allowed to isolate in their own rooms. I live in Centennial and I have a roommate, so they told me I would have to be moved to Stone Hall, which the university is using as COVID-19 quarantine housing.

I received an email telling me I would need to report to Stone Hall between 7 and 7:30 p.m. The rooms in Stone were equipped with a miniature refrigerator, a microwave, a roll of toilet paper, a trash bag, a small bar of soap and a plastic cup. I was responsible for bringing everything else I needed.  

 The only time I was permitted to leave my room was to pick up meals from the lobby. Breakfast was delivered between 8 and 9 a.m., lunch between 11 a.m. and noon and dinner between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. My dinner on Sept. 16 was flank steak, green beans, a salad with Italian dressing, an orange, a roll, two cookies and a bottle of water.

Thankfully I have no dietary restrictions, such as allergies or veganism, because nobody asked me if I did. The variety of food provided in the meals somewhat compensated for that, but it may be concerning to those who do have restrictions. For example, I was served chicken and seafood paella for lunch on Sept. 17, and while it was delicious, it could be dangerous to those with seafood allergies.

The University Health Center called me each day I was isolated to check my symptoms. I got my test results back on Sept. 19 and was informed I tested negative for COVID-19. I let housing know, and I moved myself out of Stone.

Overall, I think ETSU has set up an excellent system for students in on-campus housing who have symptoms of COVID-19. Meals included a variety of foods, but those with severe food allergies or dietary restrictions may need to speak up if they find their needs aren’t being considered. However, the whole system, from testing to housing to meal delivery, ran incredibly smoothly, and I commend ETSU’s safety efforts.