Campus Safety Measures

• Before returning to campus for the first time, all employees and students must successfully complete a brief online information session to ensure awareness of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Ohio Department of Health (ODH) guidelines. Employees may currently access the online information session at the top bullet located on the Safety Protocols page, while a tutorial link for students is available via Canvas.
• Before returning to campus for the first time, all supervisors and lab leaders must complete a health safety assessment of their workplace settings.
• Before coming to campus each day or leaving one’s university housing living quarters to go to other parts of campus, all members of the campus community must complete a self-administered wellness check based on CDC and ODH guidelines. The UC COVID Check app provides a simple way to conduct that self assessment and report any symptoms to University Health Services. Already, approximately 17,000 campus community members have downloaded the app.
  
• All members of the campus community must wear facial coverings on campus, except while eating or alone in a private space, or as otherwise exempted.
• All members of the campus community must adhere to social-distancing requirements.
• All areas must clean and sanitize their workplace settings throughout the day. These efforts will supplement cleaning and sanitizing activities that will occur after hours by our facilities staff. Facilities Management has posted information regarding supplies, cleaning practices and more.
• All members of the campus community must continue to abide by restrictions on travel.
• Employees who meet the CDC’s definition of individuals at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19 may be eligible to continue to work remotely. Please contact Human Resources at loaadm@uc.edu to submit a request to work remotely due to being at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19. All students with questions related to COVID-19 and risk factors should contact University Health Services via COVIDHelp@uc.edu

Employees who meet the CDC’s definition of individuals at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19 may be eligible to continue to work remotely. Please contact Human Resources at loaadm@uc.edu to submit a request to work remotely due to being at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19

Students at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19 as defined by the CDC guidelines may be at greater risk if physically coming to campus and/or residing in UC Housing. Students at higher risk or students who are otherwise concerned about their medical risks related to COVID-19 should reach out to University Health Services (UHS) via COVIDHelp@uc.edu in order to obtain additional information regarding reporting requirements and monitoring.  

For assistance with academic or housing accommodations, visit the Accessibility Resources web site or email at accessresources@uc.edu.

The same precautions that will protect you from the common cold and the flu will protect you from COVID-19:

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available.
• Avoid touching your mouth, nose, or eyes.
• Cover coughs/sneezes with your arm or a tissue.
• Avoid exposure to others who are sick.
• Stay home if you are ill (except to visit a health care professional) and avoid close contact with others. See CDC guidelines on when to quarantine.
  
• Get adequate sleep and eat well-balanced meals to ensure a healthy immune system.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.

CDC recommends wearing cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain (e.g., grocery stores and pharmacies), especially in areas of significant community-based transmission. And for those essential employees working on campus as well as students living on campus, UC requires the wearing of a facial covering. The same holds true for employees or students currently coming to campus for any reason.  

We continue to closely monitor the guidelines from local, state and federal agencies. University Health Services works closely with and maintains coordination with local and state departments of health. UHS is able to screen for symptoms and follow all public health protocols should anyone with potential Coronavirus need care.

As always, the health and safety of our students, faculty, staff, patients and visitors is our top priority. We will continue to keep our community informed — and we encourage everyone to practice routine hygiene etiquette as this is the best way to prevent the spread of infection.

For more updates or information as they arrive, please visit University Health Services web page.

More information about COVID-19 can be found at The Ohio Department of Health.

Essential personnel are described in University Rule 3361:30-16-01. These include

• College of Medicine;
• University Police;
• Hoxworth Blood Center;
• Office of Residence Life/Housing units; 
• Utility plants; 
• Emergency maintenance operations; 
• Any research unit where the integrity of the research must be preserved; 
• Service units that routinely operate on a seven day per week, twenty-four hour per day service schedule.

For more, see UC’s Emergency Operations Plan.