Coronavirus | Photo by Soham Parikh | The Wright State Guardian
Wright State University (WSU) released a statement on Oct. 29 announcing that testing will be expanded to asymptomatic students and employees throughout the remainder of the semester and into the spring.
Expanded screening
According to Interim Provost Douglas Leaman, WSU will join the other institutions in the state of Ohio that have on-campus student housing. The new pilot program aims to test 100 individuals per week who are asymptomatic at WSU.
“Wright State University is expanding its screening program to include additional asymptomatic individuals. This pilot testing program is the latest health and safety initiative Wright State is utilizing to protect the safety and well-being of our students and employees by fighting against COVID-19 spread,” said Leaman.
These groups include those involved with athletics, resident assistants and professional staff from Housing and those in clinical settings.
“The screening program will use the rapid Abbott BinaxNOW COVID-19 antigen screening tests and will include students and employees from areas of campus who have high incidence of in-person contact with others and are therefore at higher-risk of exposure to COVID-19,” said Leaman.
Those screened will be tested weekly for three weeks and will be notified via email if they are selected for testing.
“Testing will be administered at the Lot 20 bus shelter adjacent to the Wright State Physicians Health Center Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to noon. Wright State Physicians staff will administer the rapid antigen tests. It will take about 15 minutes for individuals to receive their test results. Testing of other students or patients with a Wright State Physicians’ order will continue to be offered at the drive-through site from 2 to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday,” said Leaman.
Though WSU is not accepting volunteers at this time for the screening, it will communicate opportunities in the future during the Spring Semester.
WSU member responsibilities
Members of the WSU community are asked to self-report through the COVID-19 Self-Reporting Form located on the Coronavirus Response website and to keep track of the COVID-19 Dashboard that shows all active coronavirus cases. Members are also asked to continue practicing social distancing, wearing masks and washing hands to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
