College of Medicine leaders updated faculty, staff and students on Sept. 3 about the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic:
This Week’s Updates:
Testing Unvaccinated Students
As shared in Penn State Today, any student who is not vaccinated for COVID-19 is required to test weekly for COVID-19. Any graduate student who is unvaccinated or failed to report their status was sent an email on Sept. 2 notifying them that they are in violation of the Penn State University Code of Student Conduct, and that failure to obtain a COVID test next week may lead to their academic suspension. Unvaccinated medical and physician assistant students have already begun weekly testing.
If any of these students should become vaccinated (i.e., receive two doses of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or one shot of Johnson & Johnson, and complete an additional two weeks of testing to become fully vaccinated) throughout the academic year, they can update their vaccination record through myUHS AND by emailing Student Health (student_health@pennstatehealth.psu.edu) to be removed from the testing database.
Significant consequences are in place for those who do not comply with the required testing, up to and including separation from the University.
For those who are unsure about the COVID-19 vaccine process, these questions and answers may be helpful. In addition, students can contact Dr. Carol Freer, a hospitalist and infectious diseases specialist at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, to discuss any concerns. She can be reached at cfreer@pennstatehealth.psu.edu.
Testing Unvaccinated Employees
As shared in Penn State Today, required weekly COVID-19 testing began Sept. 1 for full-time Penn State College of Medicine faculty and staff who have not shared with the University that they are fully vaccinated. Required testing for part-time unvaccinated employees is scheduled to begin later in September.
Unvaccinated full-time employees who are working on campus will receive an email each Wednesday from PSUCOVIDtesting@psu.edu. The email will notify them that they must get tested within seven days and will include specific instructions on how to get tested. All required faculty and staff testing will be conducted using mail-in COVID-19 test kits from Vault Health, a third-party vendor. Email notifications will include a link to order a test kit. All completed tests should be mailed or returned to a campus drop box within 24 hours of completion.
Penn State continues to strongly encourage employees to be vaccinated for COVID-19 as soon as possible.
Employees who receive their vaccine can update their vaccine status in the University’s Salesforce Health Cloud once they have received two shots of either Pfizer or Moderna or one shot of Johnson & Johnson. Weekly testing will continue for an additional two weeks to allow the vaccine to be effective, and then the employee will be released from the weekly testing process.
Employees who are working remotely 100% of the time can be exempted from testing and should complete the Full Remote Employee Form to request an exemption. Employees who need to request a temporary exception to the weekly testing should speak with their unit’s Human Resources strategic partner.
Speaker Seminars
In-person seminars by internal speakers are currently permitted in the College, with adherence to the posted 50% room-capacity guidelines. NO food or drink is permitted in the room during the seminar or class. Seminars by external speakers are still suspended for the remainder of the fall semester, except in those cases deemed mission critical (e.g., faculty recruitment).
Flu Vaccines
Influenza (flu) infections were significantly reduced last year due to masking, social distancing, reduced travel, remote work and other mitigation measures in place because of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as in-person activities increase, influenza and other respiratory viruses could circulate at much higher levels this fall and winter. Therefore, it’s very important to receive the annual flu vaccine as soon as it is available. As mentioned in a Sept. 1 Penn State News article, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance states that the COVID-19 vaccine and flu vaccine can be given at the same time.
Changes to Clinical Research Study Participant Screening Script
The COVID-19 Script for Screening and Informing Study Participants has been updated. The script now has content informing participants that they may come in contact with other participants whose COVID-19 vaccination status is unknown. Additionally, regardless of any changes in hospital visitation policy, research visits are limited to the study participant and essential caregiver and/or parent.
Attend College of Medicine Town Hall Sept. 22
The College-specific, virtual town hall has been rescheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 22 at 4 p.m. Questions can be submitted in advance here. Mark your calendar and use this link to attend.