OHIO’s COVID Response: How are we doing? What will happen going forward?

As the University eyes a fall semester with more in-person learning, OHIO News sat down (at a distance) with Gillian Ice, special assistant to the president for public health operations, to ask how she feels about the effectiveness of OHIO’s COVID-19 response to date and to find out what is in store for summer and fall. 

You’ve been working on the University’s response to COVID-19 for seven months now. How is it going?

I’m encouraged to say that it’s heading in the right direction: a downward slope across the board. We see a decrease in daily case counts and positivity rates on all OHIO campuses. We are testing more people than ever, and the positivity rate is either holding steady or trending down – this is a good thing. These trends are a result of the significant COVID response efforts the University has undertaken and the public health measures that we all have committed to supporting.

President Nellis announced yesterday that OHIO will again test students before returning to campus for fall semester. Was it worth it when we had students test at home before this semester?

Absolutely. Testing students before they returned to campus allowed us to identify 195 infected students, who were able to isolate at home and not bring the virus to our campuses. We certainly will take that preventative measure before we reconvene this fall.

President Nellis didn’t mention this, but regular asymptomatic testing for on- and off-campus students will likely continue too. This is considered a best practice in higher education because it is critical to slowing the spread on campus, and for containing outbreaks. So far this spring semester, we have identified over 800 asymptomatic cases – that is 800 people we were able to identify and isolate and stop from moving around our campus community. The results of our asymptomatic testing effort are significant.

What are we doing to make our learning spaces safe?

Our learning spaces are very safe thanks to de-densification, masks and distance markers. We know that transmission within our classrooms has been extremely limited, and that many other universities report low or no transmission. Studies of K-12 classrooms also report extremely limited transmission. When transmission happens in the college environment, it is largely at social gatherings – both big and small. 

De-densified classrooms and labs will still be the norm this summer and fall, so that we can ensure physical distancing. This means that approximately 60 percent of classes will be in person, based on available space. Some larger classes might still be delivered online, others will be divided into smaller sections and increased hybrid offerings will offer more in-person interaction with a mix of face-to-face and online elements each week. 

And what about the residence halls – can they safely handle even more students?

Yes. They can. The virus that causes COVID-19 travels easily when the environment allows it to. The reason classroom transmission is low is because we create an environment that makes it hard to transmit the virus. Though it is harder to create that environment in a congregate living setting, I feel we have done a good job at creating safe living arrangements.

Residence halls will continue to be de-densified, with only single and double rooms available. We will continue to provide isolation and quarantine housing for those residential students who test positive or who are exposed.

Our testing strategy has made a huge difference in our residential housing options this semester compared to last fall semester 2020. Asymptomatic testing identified 229 individuals who we were able to isolate and stop from spreading the virus. Last fall, we tested less frequently, making it harder to identify people who were positive. Contact tracing, in collaboration with the Athens City-County Health Department (ACCHD), has helped us quickly identify people who were exposed. 

Last semester, ACCHD had to quarantine entire residence halls on three occasions. That has not happened this semester, and we have not even had to implement our Remain-in-Room plan (the last effort the University can take to prevent a whole-hall quarantine). And these successes are with far more students living in residence halls. The health commissioner told me the other day how pleased he was with our ability to control spread on campus – I feel confident that we can safely house students.

Will we still have to wear masks on campus?

I know people are tired of hearing me talking about it, but masking and physical distancing will, in all likelihood, remain with us through the summer and into fall. We know these measures are the most effective ways to stop the spread of the virus, and honestly one of my biggest challenges is getting people to consistently take these simple precautions. They are extremely effective at controlling virus spread – if we could all just practice them consistently.

We will continue to follow guidelines from the Ohio Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention related to facial coverings, limitations on public gatherings and other safety protocols. As the governor allows more types of gatherings and in greater numbers, we will evaluate our own internal guidelines and permitting for campus activities to ensure our campus standards are consistent with those of the state. 

Will you still be using COVID Campus Liaisons for contact tracing?

Yes. We will. The ACCHD simply does not have time to do contract tracing for the OHIO community – they are busy enough with county cases and with the vaccination rollout. Through contact tracing, our COVID Campus Liaisons were able to quarantine 1,190 individuals, 137 of which ultimately tested positive, isolated and were prevented from spreading the virus. They also cared for 1,133 positive individuals – helping them with everything from access to medical care to returning to campus activities.

The case investigations and contact tracing interviews that the CCLs conduct are critical to our COVID response plan. They follow individuals throughout their isolation or quarantine, providing resources and support. Without successful quarantine and isolation of exposed and infected individuals, we can’t have a successful COVID response – our CCLs are a critical piece of that success.

What role will the vaccine play in campus safety?

Most faculty and staff should have had the option to be vaccinated by the time fall semester begins, which is a huge consideration in preparing for in-person activities. We know the available vaccines are highly effective, and it provides a palpable level of relief to know that protection will be there for faculty and staff. 

To date, the governor has not prioritized college students, faculty or staff in the vaccine rollout, but we anticipate that vaccines will be available in late summer or fall for OHIO students.  Until the vaccine is widely available in the community and country, we will likely still have a moderate level of disease. That is why our public health measures will continue to play an essential role in campus health. However, as with all things COVID, this is hard to predict.  We may be fortunate and have greater vaccine access than predicted and we will adjust accordingly. 

For more information on OHIO’s coronavirus response, visit https://www.ohio.edu/coronavirus.