COVID is again an issue this Fall. There have been many different ways that colleges have started to prepare for this. Some being major changes, and others being minor, or none at all. The University of Detroit Mercy has noticed this rise.
“The first thing the University is doing is monitoring the hospitalization levels in our area through the CDC website,” said Sydney Gordinier, nurse practitioner at the Wellness Center. “We are still at a low which is encouraging, but it does not reflect what exactly is happening on our campus.”
When the COVID-19 pandemic first happened, everything was being reported to the health department. When a student or faculty would test at home, it would then be reported, so the CDC had pretty decent numbers. That is no longer happening. The CDC is now just looking at the number of hospitalizations.
The University is encouraging, and asking all students and employees to follow the CDC guidelines, while also holding themselves responsible for their own health. The University is also encouraging vaccination. It recently had a COVID vaccine clinic on campus. There are also masks available if they are needed, or just for personal preference.
“The last big thing the university is doing is promoting wellness and wellbeing,” Gordinier said. “Over the summer there was a website developed called udmercy.edu/health that talks about our wellness and wellbeing initiatives.”
Some things students and employees can do to take initiative over their wellbeing is getting outdoors, going on walks, managing stress, eating healthy and exercise.
“Considering COVID will never disappear completely,” said Jennifer Raptoplous, a senior at Detroit Mercy, “I think that the preventative measures that the University takes are reasonable.”
For now, the university is monitoring the rise in COVID cases. If the COVID committee, that meets periodically, sees any problems rising then they will convene and talk about what will happen moving forward from there.
“I believe Detroit Mercy is doing a good job because they are recommending that we follow the CDC guidelines,” said Jada Moorehead, a senior at Detroit Mercy. “The CDC knows the correct procedures to follow to keep us the safest.”
By following the CDC guidelines, the university is following a medical protocol, which should leaves no room for the wrong action to be taken.
