Novel Corona Virus
3/3/20 Public Health provides guidance for returning travelers As an increasing number of countries around the world begin to experience person-to-person transmission of COVID-19 infections, there are questions about what travelers should do when they return to the U.S. For travelers from China, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is still actively screening at airports and notifying local public health departments at their final destination. These individuals are then monitored by public health. Individuals returning from Italy, Japan, South Korea and Iran are also considered to be at an elevated risk of exposure. Although the CDC has not made any formal monitoring recommendations for these individuals, the Humboldt County Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS) Public Health Branch is asking returning travelers from areas with sustained community transmission to monitor themselves for fever and respiratory symptoms upon their return.
Standard public health recommendations for ill individuals apply regardless of travel history and include staying home when ill, covering your cough, washing hands frequently and cleaning commonly used surfaces in the home often such as keyboards, remotes, phones, doorknobs, handles and counters. Taking these measures inside the home will help to protect family members if you are ill. Having ill family members keep some distance from other household members, such as staying in their own sleep area as much as possible rather than in common spaces, can also help to decrease spread. When COVID-19 begins to circulate within our own community, there will no longer be a need for travelers to self-identify as they will be at no higher risk of infection than anyone else in the community. DHHS Public Health, the California Department of Public Health and the CDC are closely watching this rapidly evolving situation and will provide additional guidance as it becomes available. At some point, when our community is seeing spread of COVID-19, we may implement some social distancing strategies such as cancelling large events, recommending people avoid large gathering places and even working with schools on temporary closures. These strategies can be effective in slowing the number of new cases but also have broad-based community impacts, so these measures will only be taken if they are likely to help limit transmission. In the meantime, review your family’s emergency preparedness plan just as you would for earthquakes or fires or other events that might disrupt normal day-to-day activities. Being prepared will help to decrease the impact of COVID-19 in our community. For more information about COVID-19, please call Public Health during normal business hours at 707-445-6200, or visit Humboldt Health Alert at humboldtgov.org/HumboldtHealthAlert. -###- Follow us on Twitter: @HumCoDHHS, Public Health guidance for travelers 2/21/20 Cal Poly Humboldt First Case of Documented Novel Corona Virus infection in Humboldt County The Humboldt County Public Health Department has received confirmation from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of a case of COVID-19 in a Humboldt County resident. There is a second ill individual who is a close contact of the index case and is being tested. This second case is not yet confirmed. This marks the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Humboldt County. Presently, the ill individuals are doing well and are self-isolating at home, while being monitored for symptoms by the Public Health Communicable Disease Surveillance and Control Unit. Any close contacts of this individual will be quarantined at home and monitored for symptoms by health department staff. With the amount of foreign travel by County residents, including travel to China, it is not surprising that a case has emerged locally. Per the Humboldt County Public Health Department, there is no current evidence the novel coronavirus is circulating in the local community. The risk to the public is still low. Recommendations for campus community:
CDC Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Webpage CDC Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
Message to Humboldt Campus regarding traveling over Spring Break 2/18/2020 We want all of our campus community to stay as healthy as possible this Spring. Please try to get enough sleep and drink plenty of water. Novel Corona Virus infections have become widespread in mainland China. When possible, avoid travel to mainland China where the risk of exposure to the novel Corona virus remains high. According to the California Department of Public Health, travelers who do go to mainland China should not attend school for 14 days after they leave China and should remain in an isolated environment ( at home) to prevent spread of a possible infection. If symptoms of fever, cough or breathing difficulties develop these travelers should seek immediate medical attention. When seeking medical attention they should wear a mask and let the health clinic know of their recent travel as soon as they enter the clinic.
For all campus members: Please stay home when you are sick. Remain home until your fever has been gone for at least 24 hours. Seek immediate medical care if your symptoms are severe such as high fever, difficulty breathing. Use good respiratory etiquette by covering your cough with a tissue or your sleeve. Wash your hands frequently. Consider getting the influenza vaccination if you have not already done so. If you have questions or concerns please contact the Humboldt Student Health and Wellbeing team at 707-826-3146. ********************************************************************************************************************************************* Avoid touching your face or eyes.
All international travelers should stay up to date on Center for Disease Control and State Department recommendations as increasing infections internationally are likely to occur. Chinese New Year typically brings increased travel across China and spread of this coronavirus is likely to occur.
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