Similar to last semester, SUNY Oswego will use the Daily Health Screening to track students and their potential COVID-19 symptoms or exposures.

In an email to students from Provost Scott Furlong and Vice President Jerri Howland, it is a requirement for students and employees coming to campus throughout the semester to complete the daily health screening.

Students who live on-campus must complete the health screening daily. Those who live off-campus must fill out the screening every time they plan on coming to campus for any reason. Angie Brown, the director of health services, said it is still recommended that off-campus students fill out the tracker, “especially if a person develops symptoms or feels they have been exposed.”

There are six different colors for the “dot” system with the symptom tracker. The green dot means there are no symptoms or any contact or exposure. That color is the only dot that expires at midnight every time a student fills out the tracker.

A grey dot means the status of the tracker has expired for the student, and a black dot simply means there is no data.

According to an email from Brown, an orange dot means there was a documented exposure, a red dot means the student has symptoms or they are currently COVID-19 positive and a yellow dot means the student has a pending COVID-19 test that is not saliva-based and is likely in quarantine.

Students are required to quarantine and contact health services if they receive an orange or red dot. The red, orange and yellow dots do not expire daily, Brown said.

“A student’s status is reset when they are no longer at risk for exposing others,” Brown said. “Generally this is 10 days after being positive or exposed but can be more or less.”

Brown mentioned that the health screening for employees is similar to the students’ tracker. All of the same questions are asked, but employees’ responses are monitored by SUNY Oswego’s Human Resources, according to Brown. 

Furlong and Howland said in the first email that faculty members are encouraged to ask students to show the results of the symptom tracker before classes. Students are also required to show a green dot before entering dining halls or the library. Brown added that decision was not made by health services.

If students do not have a green dot, students can fill out a sick tray form to have a friend pick up their meal. The forms can be found in residence halls or from the link provided in Brown’s email. Those students must also call the dining hall and provide the friend’s ID number and name to verify they are picking up the meal.

For those that made a mistake on their form and received the incorrect colored dot, students can call health services Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. On weekends or after hours, health services may not be able to assist students until those times, according to Brown’s email.

“We are hoping students will be honest when they answer these questions, but I am unsure how this will turn out,” Brown said. “I do not see a way of preventing this other than educating students about the importance of answering these questions honestly.”

Matt Watling | The Oswegonian