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There is now a CONTENT FREEZE for Mercury while we switch to a new platform. It began on Friday, March 10 at 6pm and will end on Wednesday, March 15 at noon. No new content can be created during this time, but all material in the system as of the beginning of the freeze will be migrated to the new platform, including users and groups. Functionally the new site is identical to the old one. webteam@gatech.edu
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Atlanta, GA | Posted: August 18, 2022
Rachael Pocklington
Institute Communications
Summary Sentence:
It is a good time to remind ourselves of Georgia Tech’s recent operational shifts to help keep the community as safe as possible while we move from a temporary emergency Covid-19 response into an ongoing, sustainable Covid-19 response.
Full Summary:
With the start of the fall semester, it is a good time to remind ourselves of Georgia Tech’s recent operational shifts to help keep the community as safe as possible while we move from a temporary emergency Covid-19 response into an ongoing, sustainable Covid-19 response.
Wastewater Testing With the start of the fall semester, it is a good time to remind ourselves of Georgia Tech’s recent operational shifts to help keep the community as safe as possible while we move from a temporary emergency Covid-19 response into an ongoing, sustainable Covid-19 response. You are encouraged to read all updated guidance at health.gatech.edu/coronavirus.
We continue to recognize that Covid-19 vaccines and boosters offer safe, effective protection and urge all students, faculty, staff, and visitors to get vaccinated and boosted either on campus or at a local provider. Stamps Health Services continues to conduct vaccine clinics for those who are eligible. You can learn more here: health.gatech.edu/coronavirus/vaccine.
As part of Georgia Tech’s continued monitoring of the overall health of the campus community, we have transitioned from individual surveillance testing to wastewater surveillance testing. Over the past 18 months, Georgia Tech’s Covid-19 testing team has validated the use of wastewater testing for Covid-19 detection and has put in place the infrastructure necessary to conduct broad-based wastewater surveillance. As such, Georgia Tech has created new dashboards to track and report the status of wastewater testing as well as symptomatic positives (students only) from Stamps Health Services. The previous dashboard, that has tracked cases since 2020, will be archived but remain publicly available. Access to the new dashboards can be found here: health.gatech.edu/coronavirus/monitoring-covid.
“Many health experts agree that Covid-19 is with us for the foreseeable future, and, while the severity of cases is much less overall, we continue our commitment to track overall trends of the virus in our community,” said Will Smith, director of Emergency Management and Communications for the Georgia Tech Police Department. “We have been exploring the use of wastewater testing during the pandemic, and it has proven to be an effective and reliable method of tracking the prevalence of Covid-19 in our population.”
Beginning this summer, Georgia Tech deployed eight autosamplers across campus that are programmed to pump small volumes of sewage from a given site at regular time intervals throughout the day, yielding a composite sample of sewage that represents a sample collected over multiple days. Currently, samples are taken for analysis on Monday and Thursday mornings. More information about wastewater testing, including FAQs, may be found here: health.gatech.edu/coronavirus/monitoring-covid.
“As with Georgia Tech’s response to Covid-19 from the beginning, we remain vigilant and will use scientific data to support how we operate to protect the well-being of our community,” added Smith. “As we move forward, every one of us will need to continue to make informed decisions for the sake of our own health and the health of others.”
To help keep yourself and the community safe, there are many actions you can take to help protect yourself and mitigate the spread of Covid-19.
Stay informed, healthy, and well by visiting health.gatech.edu/coronavirus for the most up-to-date guidance and resources.
