Guidelines for a Safer Holiday Break
Colleges and universities have seen cases and clusters of COVID-19 throughout the fall semester. While holidays are a time when families and others gather together, you should be careful and take steps to prevent the spread of the virus while you’re on break.
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services provides the following tips:
You may need to quarantine.
If you are leaving a campus or county with widespread COVID-19, you should quarantine for 14 days and monitor your health for symptoms.
Avoid high-risk activities.
These settings include: indoor settings, places where people can’t socially distance; settings of increased respiratory activities like singing, yelling, laughing, or vigorous exercise; places where people have extended face-to-face conversations; settings like bars, restaurants and social gatherings where people remove their mask to eat or drink.
Be prepared.
If you leave home, practice the 3Ws and bring extra cloth face coverings, tissues and hand sanitizer whenever possible.
Protect your overall health.
Get your flu shot if you have not done so already. While it can’t protect you from COVID-19, the flu vaccine is the best way to stay healthy by protecting yourself from the flu.
Limit close contact with others.
Avoid close contact with people you aren’t living or staying with over the holiday break.
Observe the 3 Ws.
Wear a cloth face covering over your nose and mouth.
Wait at least six feet apart to keep social distance.
Wash your hands often with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, use hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol.
Avoid high-touch surfaces and shared items.
Use cashless payment options when possible, avoid any self-serve food or drink options, and use disposable food service items including utensils and dishes when possible. Do not share mobile phones or tablets.
When returning to campus, be informed.
Be aware of any policies or procedures for returning to campus put in place by your college or university, such as testing or quarantine requirements. Continue practicing the 3 Ws whenever you are traveling and around others outside your household.