Hi everyone, I hope you’re all having a good week.
Welcome to the fourth episode of UVA Weekly.
If you’re tuning in for the first time, thanks for joining us.
We started this show as a way to communicate primarily with our students about the latest
on COVID-19 and this very unusual semester, though we hope the information we share here
will be useful to other audiences as well.
Let me start with a quick review of the numbers: At the time we’re recording this on Wednesday,
we have 224 active cases, meaning new cases with a positive test result in the past
10 days that require isolation on or off Grounds.
This active cases number is the most critical, since it gives a sense of what we’re managing
at any given time.
Right now, 5% of the isolation space we’ve set aside for students who test positive is
occupied, as is 29% of the quarantine space we’ve reserved for close contacts.
With the help of our public health experts, we’re carefully tracking key metrics to
make sure the new guidelines we put in place last week around gatherings, masking, and travel are
helping us to stay a step ahead of the virus.
Thanks to all of you for your patience, understanding, and compliance with these new and hopefully
temporary restrictions.
As you know, we have also ramped up our testing, and you’ll see saliva testing beginning
to happen this week around Grounds.
This will allow us to expand testing in a quick and non-invasive way, and you'll see
a video about the process later on in this episode.
If you’re asked to submit a test, please do so.
And I’ll say something I’ve said before, but it bears repeating: you will not get in
trouble for testing positive.
On a different note, I have heard that a number of you are asking how you can get
involved in Charlottesville and the surrounding communities, and I applaud your interest.
In addition to the organizations you’re familiar with already – Madison House and
service-focused CIOs – the website you are hopefully seeing on the screen right now is
a great resource—it lists and describes a number of volunteer opportunities.
This site was originally designed for UVA employees, but the opportunities are open
to anyone, and there are some great ideas of ways you can get involved.
I realize we’re entering midterm season, which can be a stressful time even under normal
circumstances.
Over the next few weeks, it’s going to be important to take care of yourselves, both
physically and mentally, and you’ll be hearing more about how to do that a bit later in the
show.
That’s it for me this week.
Thanks for watching, and please keep up the good work in following our guidelines around
masking, distancing, and gathering to keep this semester on track.
I understand that Cavman made it down to the Corner this weekend and had good things to
report about the number of people wearing masks, keeping groups to 5 or fewer people,
and staying 6 feet apart from each other – thanks again to all of you for doing your part.
It will make all the difference.
Now, as usual, it is my pleasure to turn things over to the inimitable Davion Zeno.
Thanks Jim.
Wassup Guys, Zeno here and I’m back like I left something.
Coming to you with the #YouVA team to talk all things COVID and news on grounds.
As Jim mentioned, we’ve got another testing program starting up at UVA.
I promise this one isn’t as invasive as the nasal swab.
Let’s learn a little bit more about it.
As part of pandemic control on Grounds, we are doing several tests.
We have nasal swab tests; we are doing the wastewater testing, and this is one additional
tool that we have added that is specific to individuals that we can identify fairly quickly.
We will have designated places for saliva sample collection.
So, students have to go there, they’ll have to bring their ID and once their ID is scanned,
they will be given a tube and gently drool into this test tube.
And there will be a staff member with a biohazard bag, and you drop it in the bag and that’s
all the students have to do.
Spitting in the tube is straightforward, it’s easy and another thing compared with the nasal
swab is the nasal swab protocol requires extraction of this virus which causes potential safety
concerns.
This procedure we don’t even open the tube we heat inactivate it and then people will
go in there and take out samples.
So, we skipped a couple procedures, it’s safer and it’s quicker.
People that are positive, but they don’t know that they are carrying the virus, if
you identify them soon enough and ask them to isolate so they no longer are disseminating
the virus to others.
So that is the whole point of doing this and the faster you can detect the faster you can
do this isolation and quarantine.
That definitely looks more pleasant than a nasal swab.
Students who are selected for testing will be notified by email and should proceed to
a screening location on Grounds.
The test only takes a few minutes.
Over the last couple of weeks, we have been spewing facts, -- yeah, I know I have on a
polo.
It’s mid-term season, I am looking for jobs, grades coming in kind of wild, I'm tired but
we are here and that’s important.
Like I said we have mostly been talking facts, stats, and procedures about COVID-19 which
is helpful but this week we are taking a different approach.
This segment is all about Self Care or Self Love.
Here’s three small actions you can do to mind your mental health during this time.
One,
reduce time on your phone.
We have been spending so much time on screens, it’s getting ridiculous.
If you turn on your phone’s greyscale, the grayscale mutes the colors, tricking our minds
to not engage because it's less pretty.
Two,
please adopt a solid sleeping schedule.
I don't know who made it cool to pull all-nighters to do work, but I know they are evil.
You should get 7-9 hours of sleep daily.
Also, during the hour before bed: put down remotes, laptops, and phones.
Try reading a book, meditating, or reflecting on the things that you are grateful for.
This will help you truly be out like a light.
Lastly, get outside or exercise.
The AFC, Mem gym, and Slaughter are open, and they are in compliance with all safety
precautions.
There is a whole system they have and trust me it is poetry in motion.
Exploring O-Hill trails can be a fun time and its right here on grounds.
Also, eating balanced meals is important.
Nothing but mac and cheese for dinner isn't okay but also don’t ask me what I had for
dinner last night.
You can find more tips on how to navigate this socially distanced world on the Student
Health website under Guides for Well-being at UVA.
Let’s hear what some other student have to say about taking care of ourselves and
one another.
Hi everyone, I’m Naeha and I’m a fourth-year at UVA.
Today we’re going to be walking around Grounds and seeing how students are handling life
during a pandemic, but first let’s make sure we’re 6 feet apart.
So what have you been able to do to see friends and socialize?
I live in a house with seven other people, so we’re having a Hunger Games to see which
five can stay and I just hang out with people at a distance if I can in outside spaces.
I’ve mostly been seeing people one-on-one, so I’ve had a lot of socially distanced
outside Lawn lunches with a lot of friends.
We started inventing a couple croquet sports, we actually have a kickball and we hit a kickball
with mallets, I don’t know if that’s an official sport yet but definitely coming out
soon.
We’ve been having movie nights on the weekends, walking around Grounds and just being able
to enjoy it and reminisce has also been special in its own way.
So, my dog, his name is Leo he’s a Pomeranian/Husky.
Never thought I would actually get a dog, but quarantine happened, and I was like, I
have a lot of time to take care of a puppy and help train him.
[LAUGHING]
Do you have a message for the people?
Just try to remain optimistic, even for myself that’s really hard but eventually this thing
will hopefully end.
We’re all a community and we’re all affected by this.
This is not a good time for anyone and it’s really hard, but our friends are there for
us even when we don’t feel their immediate presence.
Yeah, stay hopeful and stay 6 feet apart and wear your mask, it’s true, it's true.
Nicole Ruzek, the director of Counseling and Psychological Services, or CAPS, also has
some suggestions for students who are struggling.
CAPS is offering virtual counseling services to all students, in addition to crisis support.
I’m Nicole Ruzek, I’m the Director of Counseling and Psychological Services on Grounds,
were known as CAPS.
Obviously, this is been a stressful time for all of us.
I think for students they’re already facing stress related academics as well as trying
to form new relationships and adjust to being on Grounds, so doing all the normal student
things that are already stressful but then having this added level of stress related
to being in the middle of a pandemic.
So, this semester at CAPS we’re offering a whole range of services for students.
We’re offering our normal services, so individual therapy, group therapy, care management services,
psychiatric services, consultation and outreach, crisis services, all of those things were
offering via telehealth.
We’ve also expanded our group options in order to respond to this moment.
At CAPS, we really want students to know that we’re open and available whether a student
wants to do one-on-one individual therapy or connect in a group space or if they would
like us to come to their organization and provide a workshop on stress management or
self-care, or if a student is in crisis and needs to talk to someone immediately.
We really want students to know that we’re here for you, we’re available and we’re
just a phone call away.
In current news, election day is slowly creeping upon us and I urge you to get registered to
vote.
The deadline to get registered to vote is Oct. 13th for the state of Virginia and election
day is Nov 3rd.
If you’ve moved recently, please be sure to check your registration
status and jurisdiction of where you vote.
If you are a UVA student, you can register to vote in Charlottesville.
If you have a Virginia license, you can get registered online at vote.elections.virginia.gov/VoterInformation.
You can also find your polling place, apply to vote absentee by mail, and check your registration
status.
Please keep in mind that the deadline for the application to vote absentee in Virginia
is Oct. 23rd but try to apply by October 6th so you can turn in your ballot 2 weeks before
election day.
If you’re out of state like me or don’t have a Virginia license, you will have to
turn in a voter registration form.
Here in the 5th District, Democratic Nominee Dr. Cam Webb is taking on Republican nominee
Bob Good.
The race is looking like a toss-up so your vote might matter more here.
Want to find out more information about how and why to vote this election season? Our
own Center for Politics has some great resources at centerforpolitics.org/vote.
Another week another show for UVA weekly.
Don’t forget to hit up the @YOUva team on Instagram or email us at youva@virginia.edu.
This has been Zeno and I’m out like a light.