{"id":5988,"date":"2023-07-25T13:00:03","date_gmt":"2023-07-25T17:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/?p=5988"},"modified":"2024-03-08T10:12:52","modified_gmt":"2024-03-08T15:12:52","slug":"covid-19-fall-2023-protocol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/covid-19-fall-2023-protocol\/","title":{"rendered":"COVID-19 Fall 2023 Protocol"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>As we enter into Fall 2023 semester, the University has moved to a COVID-19 <em>endemic<\/em> approach. As an endemic virus, COVID-19 is expected to follow a regularly occurring pattern with transmission spikes in the colder months of fall and winter.&nbsp;Endemic viruses, though predictable, can cause a range of symptoms from mild to severe, hospitalization and even mortality.&nbsp;It is important to know your level of risk and take personal protection and precautions against severe disease.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"covid19-symptoms\"><strong>COVID-19 Symptoms<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n<p>We encourage all members of the university community to be cognizant of COVID-19 symptoms. Symptoms of COVID-19 can vary depending upon the current circulating variant and some people may have no symptoms.&nbsp;Everyone should familiarize themselves with COVID-19 symptoms which can be found on the CDC website at:&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/symptoms-testing\/symptoms.html\">https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/symptoms-testing\/symptoms.html<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"covid19-testing-and-when-to-test\"><strong>COVID-19 Testing and When to Test<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n<p>If you develop symptoms of COVID<em>, get tested as soon as possible<\/em>.&nbsp;Most often, COVID-19 presents with upper and\/or lower respiratory symptoms.&nbsp;For those who develop a fever, it is often difficult to distinguish between COVID-19 and seasonal influenza.&nbsp;Testing can determine which is the causative virus and the best treatment approach.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During this endemic phase, most people now have a history of repeated COVID infections and\/or a history of vaccinations.&nbsp;It may take up to 3 days for a symptomatic person to test positive due to a certain amount of \u201cviral load\u201d needed to test positive with rapid antigen testing.&nbsp;Do not assume you are COVID-free if you test negative on the first day of symptoms.&nbsp;Remember to test again for the next few days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Rapid antigen testing is available at no cost at the on-campus Health Center<\/em>.&nbsp;Antigen tests are also widely available for purchase at local pharmacies.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"if-you-have-a-direct-exposure-to-a-covid19-positive-person\"><strong>If You Have a Direct Exposure to a COVID-19 Positive Person<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n<p>If you are a direct contact of a COVID-positive case, <strong>test yourself 3-5 days post exposure<\/strong> <strong>or earlier if you<\/strong> <strong>develop symptoms<\/strong>.&nbsp;Testing earlier than days 3-5, may produce a premature negative test result.&nbsp;You do not have to quarantine if exposed but you should test yourself during the recommended time frame.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"if-you-test-positive-for-covid19\"><strong>If You Test Positive for COVID-19<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If you test positive for COVID-19, stay home or if on campus, stay in your room. Report your positive test result to Health Services (732-571-3464) or emailing <a href=\"mailto:health@monmouth.edu\">health@monmouth.edu<\/a> with a photo of your positive test and the date you tested positive.&nbsp;Reporting should be done in a timely manner, during your absence period.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>DO NOT attend in-person classes, clinicals, practice, work, internships or social events during this period.&nbsp;<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Wear a mask when accessing food or moving through public\/common areas.&nbsp;Do not eat in public\/common places.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong><em>Date of your positive test is day 0<\/em><\/strong>.&nbsp;<strong><em>Stay home or in your room for 5 days.&nbsp;You may return to school or<\/em><\/strong> <strong><em>work on day 6.<\/em><\/strong>&nbsp;The CDC recommends you be masked for days 6-10, especially if you still have symptoms.&nbsp;You may unmask during days 6-10 if you test negative with a rapid antigen test.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>You are responsible for notifying professors or place of work that you are out sick<\/strong> and your anticipated date of return.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Medical Excuse Notes: If you tested positive for COVID-19 at the Health Center, we will provide you with a medical excuse note outlining the days you will be out due to illness.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>If you tested positive at home and notified Health Services via phone\/email during your absence period, you will be sent an email that can be used as documentation of a reported, positive COVID test.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>If you tested positive at an off-campus medical facility\/provider, you will need to obtain an absence notification from that facility\/provider.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"covid-vaccination\"><strong>COVID Vaccination<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n<p>COVID Vaccination is highly recommended but not required.&nbsp;COVID vaccination remains one of the health \u201ctools\u201d to protect yourself against severe disease and hospitalization. Know your health risk and vaccination recommendations.&nbsp;Current recommendation is for adults to receive a bivalent COVID vaccination.&nbsp;Most likely, COVID-19 immunization will become an annual vaccine recommendation, along with seasonal influenza.&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As we enter into Fall 2023 semester, the University has moved to a COVID-19 endemic approach. As an endemic virus, COVID-19 is expected to follow a regularly occurring pattern with transmission spikes in the colder months of fall and winter.&nbsp;Endemic viruses, though predictable, can cause a range of symptoms from mild to severe, hospitalization and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5988"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5988\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5989,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5988\/revisions\/5989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5988"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.monmouth.edu\/covid-19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}