Wear a mask, socially distance, test, screen and protect, but what happens when that nasal swab returns positive despite all efforts, and the inevitable isolation is ahead?
First of all, isolation and self-quarantine are separate placements. Isolation is intended for individuals with symptoms of Covid-19 or a positive test. Whereas, self-quarantine’s purpose is to separate those who were in close contact with a positive student but do not have symptoms. Self-quarantine is imperative to containing the spread of the virus since, according to the CDC, the incubation period extends to “14 days, with a median time of 4-5 days from exposure to symptoms onset.” Symptoms will develop within 11.5 days, leaving students the ability to spread and infect others before presenting symptoms.
A positive Covid-19 test, administered through UF Health Screen, Test & Protect or the UF Student Health Care Center, results in a phone call to begin the isolation process and to learn who the individual has been in contact with. Contact-traced students, or students who have been identified as being in close contact with a positive student, will be moved to temporary housing to await their test.
“I spent the first few days of isolation off campus in a hotel awaiting my results,” Jack Ziegler, an 18-year-old sports management freshman, said. “Despite taking the necessary precautions to keep myself safe, I tested positive. I called UF Screen, Test & Protect, who immediately placed me in on-campus quarantine housing in Lakeside Residential Complex.”
Once students who are positive identify the students they were in close contact with, the university will call these contact-traced students and begin the process of testing.
“My friend tested positive a couple of weeks ago, and I did not think I was a ‘close contact’ to her. What I didn’t realize was that I was in contact with her roommate who later tested positive for coronavirus,” Halle Silver, an 18-year-old psychology freshman, said. “No one called me from campus; I had to call them when I started feeling sick.”
Once identified as a contact-traced student, the individual must gather their items, preferably for a 14-day period due to the lack of access to laundry. The urgency of the situation leaves students with little time to plan. Transportation to the isolation dorms also poses an issue.
“I actually would have had to walk all the way to the isolation dorm if I didn’t have my car here on campus. Nobody talked to me about a ride transportation service for those who are moving from the isolation dorms to the quarantine dorms. That would have been over a one-mile walk,” Stephen Baradon, 18-year-old mathematics freshman, said.
UF Health Screen, Test & Protect’s website states that transportation will be provided, however students currently experiencing isolation contradict this statement.
Quarantine locations for those living in residence halls include Riker Hall, Trusler Hall and Lakeside Building 2. Close contact and positive students are housed in different locations. For on campus students, they must bring linens, towels and pillows, along with at least two weeks’ worth of clothing to the quarantine residence halls.
“I was told to bring everything I needed for the next two weeks, including bed sheets, clothing, schoolwork. It was like move in day all over again. At Lakeside, you are given your own room and share two bathrooms and a kitchen with three suitemates,” Ziegler said.
Yet another question raised concerning the on-campus quarantine is one regarding meals. Contactless delivery will provide three meals a day, snacks and beverages. Meal plans or declining balances will coordinate through Gator Dining, and students without a meal plan are able to opt into a daily supplemental plan.
“I asked them how you’re supposed to eat, and if they deliver meals, and they told me that the sorority meal plans do not apply. The dorms that you stay in before your test results come back do not have microwaves or refrigerators, so I didn’t know what I was supposed to eat,” Silver said.
However, those who did isolate on campus were delivered their meals.
“Meals were available for pickup at 6 p.m. near the elevators on each floor. The brown bag meals included a hot meal for dinner with breakfast and lunch for the next day. Meals were predetermined and completely random,” Ziegler said.
Students residing in on-campus residence halls possess options when it comes to their preferred method of quarantine or isolation. If the idea of confinement to a residence hall for two weeks presents itself as unappealing, the student can choose to go home to wait out their isolation.
Silver decided against quarantining in one of the on-campus residence halls. “I was not too fond of the idea of sharing a room with another sick person and a bathroom with two additional sick people,” Silver said. However, Silver is from Boston, MA and driving up the East Coast while sick was not a viable option.
“Thankfully, my roommate said we could quarantine at her house in Florida,” Silver said. “It’s been pretty nice here, and considering I stopped experiencing symptoms around a few days into my positive test, quarantine kind of just feels like vacation while wearing a mask and disinfecting everything I touch.”
Students who reside off campus are encouraged to report their case to UF, but in regard to isolation or quarantine, they may stay in their apartment. Those who live in sororities or fraternities are not allowed to quarantine in the house. Currently, UF Health Screen, Test & Protect provides a data dashboard with an updated count of those tested, those positive with or without symptoms and the percent positive.
Living on campus in a residence hall may be considered a part of the freshman experience. But, shared living space and close quarters in communal bathrooms, kitchens and laundry rooms present possibilities for coming into contact with the virus.
When a student living in a residence hall tests positive, their entire floor is emailed and offered testing. On Sept. 7, the second and third floor of Jennings Hall were offered a free test on the ground floor between 5 and 7 p.m. The results were emailed to the students 24-48 hours following their test. Testing was optional for the residents who were not identified as in close contact with the positive student. Testing is also being offered in Broward Hall.
Testing appointments can be booked for up to a few days, so Silver and her roommate took advantage of the free testing at the dorm to receive their results as soon as possible.
UF has 600 beds available for students in need of isolation or quarantine. As of Sept. 16, 14% of the beds were occupied. The number of current isolation spaces is available here.
Isolation, quarantine and testing may sound unappealing, but please protect others by taking the necessary precautions. If you or someone you have had contact with has symptoms, get tested. You can schedule an appointment through your ONE.UF account and select a location. Bring your Gator 1 ID Card and your insurance card to the testing site. Testing off campus is also an option, but if the test returns positive you should notify UF Health.