URMC / Coronavirus (COVID-19) / Winding Down Pandemic Safeguards
Winding Down Pandemic Safeguards
Led by recent guidance from federal, state and local officials and University leadership, our Medical Center has begun the slow, careful journey towards “unwinding” the COVID safety precautions put into place during the pandemic, starting with mask-wearing practices.
Masking is still required in all clinical areas, classrooms and all common spaces throughout the Medical Center campus such as atriums, libraries, corridors and parking garages. But starting on Monday, June 14, fully-vaccinated groups do not need to mask or physically distance in conference rooms and research spaces in non-clinical areas (for the purpose of unwinding, non-clinical areas are defined as non-patient-facing and not located in a space where clinical care or work is being performed).
This may not bring the level of relief experienced in daily life outside of URMC; the new protocols do not apply to shared office spaces or breakrooms, for example. They also do not pertain to formal classroom instruction. But, this is an important step forward. As Paul Graman, M.D., professor of Medicine in Infectious Disease and Strong Memorial’s hospital epidemiologist put it: “We need to take these crucial first steps in what will be an evolving and expanding process of unwinding—there will be more to come.”
Changes at the Medical Center will serve as a demonstration project for the rest of the University, which is looking ahead to the fall when the current planning is for classes and most activities to be at full capacity, depending on the course of the virus.
As we do during flu season, those who have been fully vaccinated will have the option to wear a small COV '21 vaccine sticker on their ID badge. Employee Health has begun distributing the stickers to administrators and directors next week who will then distribute the stickers to fully vaccinated members of their team.
You may choose to wear the sticker on either the front or back of your badge, or use a vaccination card, the UR COVID-19 Vaccine Status app (for students) or the New York State Excelsior Pass to show you've been fully vaccinated.
“Our goal since the beginning of the pandemic has been to keep everyone safe: our colleagues, our patients, and our community,” said Michael S. Leonard, M.D., M.S., medical director of Employee Health and associate chief quality officer. “There is increasing evidence that the COVID vaccines protect individuals from serious illness and reduce risk of transmission. We are carefully following the evidence, CDC guidelines and NYS regulations to relax restrictions without compromising safety. The stickers will help promote workplace and psychological safety, but should not be used as a means to other or discriminate.”
Masks remain a highly effective means of reducing infection. It’s important to remember that everyone should be supported if they choose to wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status, Leonard said. ICARE Values will be central to ensuring everyone feels comfortable and safe at URMC.
Managers should give consideration to the needs of all their staff when it comes to meetings. If the group is fully vaccinated, talk or email each of them privately to determine if all are comfortable meeting unmasked and without physical distancing.
If one or more individuals are uncomfortable meeting in person, regardless of vaccination status, you should continue to conduct meetings virtually for now. If someone is not fully vaccinated but would still like to meet in person, the entire team would need to mask and practice physical distancing.
Many meetings involve individuals from multiple departments. For larger meetings, the meeting organizer is responsible for ensuring everyone is vaccinated before allowing anyone to unmask. See our FAQ for guidance on determining if potential meeting participants are vaccinated.
“As we proceed on this journey, we will continue to follow the science to safely unwind,” Leonard said.
An overview of the new protocols along with a helpful FAQ can be found on the Redesigned intranet portal (urmc.edu/redesigned). If you have questions, you may contact the Redesigned Committee at URMCRedesigned@URMC.Rochester.edu