Appendix H: Communicating with WashU Community members diagnosed with COVID 19

Communicating with WashU community members diagnosed with COVID-19 (confirmed or presumed) or who have failed the daily self-screen

General messaging points

I’m sorry to hear about your diagnosis (or symptoms or failed self-screen, whatever their situation is). Thank you for letting me know.

We are concerned for your health and well-being.

The most important thing right now is for you to take care of yourself.

Have you already spoken to the University’s Occupational Health office (employee) or Habif Health and Wellness Center (student)? Occupational Health (314-362-3528) or Habif (314-935-6695) is overseeing the university’s COVID response protocols when one of our community members fails their screen or is positive for COVID. They will need to speak with you as soon as possible so that they can:

talk to you about your symptoms or screening

determine what contacts you have had here at the university; and

determine whether we need to initiate any cleaning and disinfection protocols or quarantine protocols.

[If the person is ON CAMPUS when they disclose this information to you as their manager] Because of this diagnosis (or began experiencing symptoms or failed the screening), you will need to go home immediately. Do you have transportation to get home? If not, can someone come pick you up?

Send them outside or give them an isolated office to stay in that doesn’t expose them to others while waiting for transportation.

Provide the person with an isolation mask to use when leaving campus.

The person should avoid using public transportation to return home. Occupational Health or Habif Health and Wellness Center may be able to assist managers with a non-emergency medical transport back to the person’s home. If that is not available, managers should assist in calling for a ride.

Close the employee’s office door and do not allow anyone into the office until it is cleaned and disinfected by Facilities.

[If the person lives OFF CAMPUS] Before coming onto campus, you’ll need to receive clearance from Occupational Health (employee) or Habif (student) to return.

[If the person is a student living on campus] Before leaving your residence hall room, you will need to receive clearance from Habif.

If there’s anything we can do to offer support, please know we’re here for you.

Because you aren’t able to come to campus right now, we should talk about what you have been working on and how we can help you after you are home and have spoken with Occupational Health.

We will be thinking of you and sending all our best wishes for a full and speedy recovery.

Please reach out if we can be of any assistance to you while you are recovering at home.

This is probably an unsettling and stressful situation for you. Here are some resources that are available if you need support:

Faculty and staff may contact the university’s employee assistance program, Work-Life Solutions, 844-365-4587 (available 24 hours/day)

Students on the Danforth Campus may contact Habif Health and Wellness Center at 314-935-6695 for assistance.

Students also may utilize TAO, Therapy Assisted Online for additional support related to anxiety, depression and other common concerns.

IF ASKED: Now that there is community-wide transmission in the St. Louis region and we have multiple cases here at the university, we do not plan on notifying entire departments or our larger community each time we are made aware of a case.

If we are contacted by the Health Department as part of any contact tracing due to close contact you may have had with another member of the university community, there may be obligations we have to follow from the Health Department. If you have further questions about that, I would suggest that you call Occupational Health (314-362-3528) or Habif (314-935-6695).

(For students) In addition, if you are seeking academic or other accommodations, we may have to notify your professors or other individuals who need to know in order to help implement those accommodations.