Comment are off

As our community begins to steadily reopen, UT Health clinical activities continue to serve more patients with in-person and video visit options. Our academic and research community is also returning to campus. In order to protect our UT Health community, we are taking the following steps related to visitors on campus:

Effective Date: 5/20/20 This article was originally posted here.

Continued limited access to campus

Only designated vendors, patients, research participants, and invited visitors with a need to be on site are allowed on campus.
Approved recruitments of prospective faculty and staff should continue to occur through virtual environments.
Temperature and symptom screening will continue at identified campus entry points.
Entrances have been designated for screening as noted in the attached table.
As activity on campus increases, screening will be implemented at additional entrances.
Everyone on campus is required to wear a mask or cloth face covering.
If a visitor is ill, do not come to campus and reschedule the visit when symptoms resolve.

General Visitors and Vendors on campus

General visitors are not permitted except as indicated in these guidelines.
Designated vendors and service operators with essential campus business must coordinate access to campus with the department for which they are providing services.
Visitors must be provided with instructions regarding access to campus by the department/unit they have a need to visit.
All visitors and vendors must be screened at a campus screening station. Visitors are screened for symptoms and fever. Anyone who is ill or whose temperature exceeds 100 degrees is not allowed entry and is referred to their provider for follow up.
All visitors and vendors are required to wear a mask or cloth face covering provided by their own company.
If a visitor arrives without a mask, one will be provided at the screening station.
Visitors should wash their hands or use alcohol-based hand sanitizer when arriving on campus.
Social gatherings, group tours, and group exercise are prohibited. Outdoor sporting events will be re-evaluated in the future.
Groups exceeding 10 participants are not permitted on campus.

Visitors for Research Purposes

In person meetings with research participants are permitted on campus only when other options (e.g. phone, virtual visit) are not feasible.
Research staff should contact participants a day prior to the scheduled visit to verify that the individual is not experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 (a sample screening tool has been posted on the IRB webpage
Participants should be directed to enter campus through a designated screening site during hours of screening operations (see below).
Most clinical facilities where clinical trials take place have screening available from 7am – 5 p.m.
Research participants will be required to wear a mask or cloth face covering at all times. If a participant arrives without a face covering, a mask will be provided at the screening station.
If participants need to visit a UT Health location where access is restricted and screening is not operational, Principal Investigators should implement screening by their research staff according to the UT Health screening guidance found on the COVID-19 site.
Research participants should not be accompanied by others unless required (parent, guardian, etc.)
Other visitors, equipment vendors, and essential delivery personnel needing access to campus for research related purposes should follow guidelines outlined above for General Visitors.

Visitors for Clinical Purposes

Patients should be limited to one (1) visitor for the following circumstances:
- Patients with physical or cognitive impairment or who require additional assistance due to developmental and/or behavior challenges, where a caregiver or family member provides support.
- Visitors may not alternate between themselves during the visit.
- Minors (under age 18) may have one visitor, parent, or guardian.
All visitors are screened for symptoms and fever. Anyone who is ill or whose temperature exceeds 100 degrees is not allowed entry and is referred to their provider for follow up.
All visitors and vendors are required to wear a mask or cloth face covering. If a patient arrives without a face covering, a mask will be provided at the entrance.

Student Visitors for Research and Educational Purposes

High school students are not permitted on campus at this time. Many outreach programs have been converted to online virtual delivery. For additional information on such programs, please contact Irene Chapa at chapai@uthscsa.edu
Non-UT Health San Antonio undergraduate students are not permitted on campus at this time.
Graduate students from non-UT Health San Antonio institutions are also not permitted to be on campus at this time. Exceptions to this policy should be submitted for review and approval by the Principal Investigator’s to the respective Dean through the Student Affairs Dean. If approved, these visiting graduate students must follow the Visiting Student Policy. Please continuing to follow the guidance of the CDC about social distancing and hand hygiene measures. Experts believe that if we continue these proven practices, they will significantly help to avoid the spread of COVID-19.