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The reopening of UK universities: THREAD.
With a rising number of new daily infections, clearly there is a risk of clusters/outbreaks from reopening unis & bringing all students back to town for dorm living, off campus parties, & classroom teaching 1/n https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18721699.covid-cases-due-partying-oxford-brookes-students/">https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/1872...
With a rising number of new daily infections, clearly there is a risk of clusters/outbreaks from reopening unis & bringing all students back to town for dorm living, off campus parties, & classroom teaching 1/n https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/18721699.covid-cases-due-partying-oxford-brookes-students/">https://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/1872...
Sure, the UK is not the US, I know that! Yesterday, the number of new cases per million people in the US was double the number of new cases/million in the UK.
But the UK epidemic *is* worsening again, driven by rising infections in young adults, a warning sign for unis 2/n
But the UK epidemic *is* worsening again, driven by rising infections in young adults, a warning sign for unis 2/n
Viral transmission among @oxford_brookes students, reportedly due to off campus socializing, is another early signal of concern. Here in the US, where there were *over 36,000 campus infections* last week alone, social events/parties have been one source of spread. 3/n
Your uni thinks "personal responsibility"is a safety plan? That& #39;s NOT a safe university! If the plan is to expect students to abandon parties, the plan WILL fail. Instead, unis need to adopt harm reduction: offer safer alternatives to unmasked, indoor, covert parties. 4/n
A prediction, based on what& #39;s happened in the US.
A UK uni reopens, students return, there& #39;s a party, an outbreak, & the uni has to go online again. Uni leaders start the shaming, saying a "few bad apples" spoiled it for all.
NO, this was the university& #39;s responsibility! 5/n
A UK uni reopens, students return, there& #39;s a party, an outbreak, & the uni has to go online again. Uni leaders start the shaming, saying a "few bad apples" spoiled it for all.
NO, this was the university& #39;s responsibility! 5/n
If you, as a uni leader, are going to put lives on the line by reopening, I& #39;d argue that you have to do way more than get students to sign a personal statement saying they won& #39;t party!
First, has community transmission been driven down BEFORE reopening? It has? Good start! 6/n
First, has community transmission been driven down BEFORE reopening? It has? Good start! 6/n
Second, are students going to quarantine before class starts either before or on arrival? Your uni might be in a town with very little COVID-19, but many arriving students will come from high transmission towns or overseas. They are? Good move! 7/n
Third, if students are physically coming to campus, do you have a robust system in place to offer entry testing followed by high frequency surveillance testing (as recommended by the Independent SAGE Behavioural Advisory Group)? 8/n
If you are relying on symptom-based surveillance, the US experience suggests that this is simply not robust enough to prevent outbreaks, sorry.
In places with a reproductive number (Rt) of 2.5, twice-weekly is the safest option. 9/n https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32735339/ ">https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32735339/...
In places with a reproductive number (Rt) of 2.5, twice-weekly is the safest option. 9/n https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32735339/ ">https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32735339/...
OK, now I am assuming everyone will have a face covering, stay distant, & wash hands. Let& #39;s talk classrooms. We now know that COVID-19 CAN be spread by aerosol transmission (let& #39;s NOT debate droplets v aerosols!). Are you ignoring ventilation? You are? That. Is. Unsafe. 10/n
As a professor, I& #39;m not willing to teach inside right now (DEADLY PANDEMIC FFS). Others feel differently. IMHO unis should NEVER compel anyone to be inside a classroom during COVID. If classes must be inside: keep groups small, all masked, & bring in the VENTILATION EXPERTS 11/n
Last, you& #39;re a uni that is taking the risk to reopen. The very least you can do is publish a daily dashboard. Be transparent & accountable. Show daily tests, infections, & hospitalizations among students & staff, on and off campus. Post your safety protocols. BE HONEST.
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