Using an Exposure Call Center to Help Mitigate Outbreaks, Such as COVID-19, on a University Campus.

Rapid identification and management of close contacts is an important component of an effective university mitigation strategy for highly contagious infectious diseases such as measles and coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Institutions of higher education must plan for an associated large influx of calls that can overwhelm standard student health and local public health operations. In fall 2020, a large state public university's Department of Student Health and Wellness created a dedicated exposure call center (ECC), in close collaboration with the local public health department, to quickly assess students who learned of a COVID-19 exposure outside of the formal contact tracing process. The ECC operated 7 days a week and fielded 3361 calls: 3187 from students and 174 from staff, faculty, and parents. The ECC provided rapid assessment and guidance for students with COVID-19 exposure, allowing for prompt quarantine and medical assessment when warranted. Call centers can increase the bandwidth of university health centers and also reduce the burden on health care providers and other public health resources during periods of crisis or high demand.

COVID-19 Isolation and Quarantine Experience for Residential Students at a Large Four-Year Public University.

Rapid identification and management of students with COVID-19 symptoms, exposure, or disease are critical to halting disease spread and protecting public health. We describe the interdisciplinary isolation and quarantine program of a large, public university, the University of Virginia, Charlottesville. The program provided students with wraparound services, including medical, mental health, academic, and other support services during their isolation or quarantine stay. The program successfully accommodated 844 cases during the fall 2020 semester, thereby decreasing exposure to the rest of the university and the local community. (Am J Public Health. 2021;111(10):1772-1775. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306424).

Identifying vulnerable populations at a university during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objective: Persons with high-risk for severe COVID-19 illness require special attention when considering university operations during the novel coronavirus pandemic. The objective of this study was to determine the number of students who fall within a high-risk category according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines using linked databases. Participants: Students enrolled at a large public University and who accessed the student health center between 2016 and 2020. Methods: Clinical data were linked with both university student enrollment and disability services databases to provide a comprehensive, de-identified dataset of students at higher medical risk of severe COVID-19 illness. Results: 1902 unique students (14% of the student health center population) were identified as having one or more high-risk condition. Conclusions: Utilizing a large and longitudinally linked student database provides universities with valuable information to make critical administrative decisions about how best to accommodate high-risk students to reduce their medical risk when returning to in-person instruction.

Gender-diverse health on campus: Developing a comprehensive, multidisciplinary gender-diverse care team.

Objective: To optimize healthcare for gender-diverse students at a large, public university's Student Health and Wellness (SHW) Center. Methods: SHW professionals from medicine, gynecology, health promotion, counseling, psychiatry, and disability services developed a multidisciplinary gender-diverse care team (GDCT) in 2016. The GDCT's team-based design was created to support a diverse student body and provide extra resources to a vulnerable population, ensuring students engage fully in the University. Results: The GDCT has assisted approximately 93 unique students, in-person or by phone with clinical or supportive care. The number of students presenting with questions pertaining to transgender and gender-diverse health care has increased since 2016. Conclusions: Having a comprehensive, multidisciplinary GDCT available within a university SHW provides transgender and gender-diverse students with access to a safe, inclusive, and resource-rich environment to seek care and serves as a potential model for other college health centers.

Risk factors associated with concussions in a college student population.

PURPOSE: To determine risk factors associated with concussion among the general collegiate population using a unique data linkage methodology. METHODS: Student health medical, counseling, and disability access service data were linked with university enrollment data to provide a comprehensive, deidentified dataset of students who sought care at the student health center for concussion from 2016-2020. Using chi-squared tests and logistic regression, characteristics of students with and without concussion were evaluated. RESULTS: During the study period, 506 concussions from 474 students were identified (cumulative incidence rate of 51.7 per 10,000 students). Significant predictors of concussion included: younger age (<21 years): odds ratio (OR) = 3.52 (95% confidence intervals [CI], 2.78, 4.50), Greek affiliation: OR = 1.89 (95% CI, 1.56, 2.30), and utilization of counseling and psychological services: OR = 1.92 (95% CI 1.59, 2.32). Of the students with concussion, 47% had at least one other concussion within the preceding year. History of prior hospitalization or medical imaging for head injury increased subsequent concussion risk by 4.5 fold. CONCLUSIONS: Linking unique datasets provides a richer understanding of the characteristics and risk factors associated with student concussions than analysis of a single data source. This comprehensive dataset will enable future targeted interventions to prevent and treat college student concussions.