A message from the CEE Department

In order to help us maintain some simple and effective hygiene and procedural precautions with respect to the evolving SARS-CoV-2 situation, a number of important reminders are summarized below. Please remember that even if you are in a low-risk group for COVID-19, others around you, including your co-workers, friends, and family may be in high-risk groups, and are depending on all of us to do everything we can to protect them.

(1) WASH, WASH, WASH – Wash your hands frequently with soap and water, or use a >60% ethanol- or isopropyl alcohol-based disinfectant if soap and water are not available, especially after using the bathroom, before eating, and after blowing your nose/coughing/sneezing. Always wash your hands with soap and water if they are visibly dirty. Remember the guidance on wash time (at least 20 seconds, or enough to sing Happy Birthday twice), and be sure to clean between your fingers, under your fingernails, and the backs of your hands. For full CDC guidelines on proper hand-washing to minimize disease transmission, go here.

If you run out of hand sanitizer or were not able to find any due to the recent run on suppliers, note that we have several liters in the More Hall front office that we can distribute to others in the department (including those in Wilcox, Wilson, Harris, and Hall) as needed.

(2) Be sure not to touch your face with your hands, whether your mouth, eyes, nose, etc. We all know this can be hard, since research shows that most of us sub-consciously touch our faces many times per hour. Every one of those touches has the potential to lead to self-infection. It is VERY IMPORTANT to be especially careful about this.

(3) If you have to cough, please be sure to cover your mouth by coughing into the inside of your elbow/arm. Don’t cough into your hands, as this can simply transfer virus-containing droplets onto your hands which can then lead to contamination of any other surface you touch. Even if you are not infected, everyone around you will appreciate this

(4) VERY IMPORTANT: If you develop mild symptoms of the virus (e.g., fever, cough, shortness of breath, other cold- or flu-like symptoms) please STAY HOME, call your doctor for advice, and let your co-workers, advisors, and/or supervisors know as soon as possible how you are doing. Unless you are in life-threatening condition, please don’t go to a clinic, Hall Health, or your doctor’s office without first calling for advice, so as to limit the possibility of spreading the virus (or if you are not infected with nCoV, to limit the possibility of exposing yourself to someone who is). Work can wait until you have recovered.

(5) For additional guidance and information on what you can do to minimize risks of transmission, and what to do in case of illness, the UW, King County Public Health, WA State DOH, and CDC websites are very helpful resources (a lot of the tips are common sense items, but there are quite a few you may not have considered):

(6) Make sure you are signed up for UW Alert, so that you receive any emergency alerts re: campus conditions, since the situation is rapidly evolving. Go here to sign up.

(7) Stay in touch. If you need to stay home sick, please let your family, advisors, and/or supervisors know, so we can help make arrangements for you to keep up with work responsibilities (and so that we know you’re doing okay).

(8) Stay tuned for any announcements regarding changes in campus operations.

We may be in for some challenging times in the coming WEEKS, so please take care and keep yourself as informed as possible.