Detroit Mercy Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Pamela Zarkowski participated in the Chronicle of Higher Education’s virtual forum titled, “Promoting Health on Campus During COVID-19,” July 15.
This event addressed the ways colleges and universities are beginning to understand what reopened campuses in the fall should look like to keep students, faculty and staff safe in the face of COVID-19. They discussed the question of how they can get those groups to follow social distancing, PPE, dining and residential requirements. Hosted by a Chronicle journalist, this virtual event gathered campus leaders and public-health experts to review how campuses can safely operate. Then it pivoted to the key elements of communication and campus culture that encouraged all involved to do the right thing.
In addition, panelists also recommended how to structure health services to treat COVID-19 patients promptly; when to refer patients to outside hospital care; how to coordinate with campus contact-tracing and quarantine operations; and how to effectively separate and serve non-COVID patients while minimizing their risk of exposure to coronavirus.