How to prepare for health and safety, now and into the future
Prevention is a powerful strategy for creating higher education spaces focused on health and safety—both now, for reopening campuses, and into the future, as a proactive way to keep those campuses pristine, cost effective, and well maintained.
By putting the right amount of preparation and planning into the process and understanding that reopening and maintenance will involve different phases, higher education can achieve a comprehensive prevention approach. These are four main phases that can take any campus from a reactive to a proactive track, based on the UG2 ReNewSM program:
ReSet: Preparing for day one. This is when the cleaning, disinfecting, and sanitizing can be intensive, and it’s also when updated maintenance schedules and protocols should be established. The campus should be deep cleaned, and prepared for occupancy through a wide range of operations updates, from changing all the filters to flushing the plumbing to cleaning HVAC coils. All of these steps play a critical role in virus prevention, and in offering safety assurance to faculty, staff, students, and parents.
ReTurn: This phase begins when some campus buildings open, with limited occupancy. This is usually a shorter phase, but an incredibly important one, because it will give you an idea of the comfort level for those who are returning. It can also show gaps and shortcomings in your plan, such as inadequate signage, changes in shared space usage patterns, and mechanical and maintenance issues that need to be addressed.
RePopulate: In this phase, the campus has fully opened and buildings are functional and adjusting to new protocols. This is where communication is paramount, conveying details and expectations about new rules, changes, and updates on the importance of prevention strategies so that everyone on campus knows their role in health and safety. This is also the phase where observation is key, to understand how spaces are being used, whether airflow is sufficient, if more disinfection is required, and whether cleaning specifications needs to be adjusted.
ReCalibrate: This will be the ongoing phase of continuous operation, where that observational data is used to inform modifications and improve planning and prevention. Unfortunately, health experts believe Coronavirus will be with us for a long time, possibly even after a vaccine is developed. Every campus needs to keep that in mind, and continually pivot based on what students, faculty, and staff require. That requires ongoing recalibration of protocols and processes.
Right now, as campuses plan to reopen and take the first steps toward creating a plan, most are in ReSet mode. While that’s crucial to implement, that’s not a phase an educational institution can maintain prospectively, months after reopening has occurred and needs have changed. Knowing the different phases—and, crucially, when to transition into each–will be an integral part of keeping a campus healthier and safer for months and even years ahead.
Expanding Your Knowledge
For more insight, check out our last post, What Your Institution Will Need to Get Ready for Re-entry. In upcoming posts, we’ll continue to do a deeper dive into the specific phases of cleaning protocols, and how engineering can boost health on campuses.
Be sure to check back weekly for these posts, and don’t hesitate to contact UG2 to talk about your specific needs. If you’re in higher education, now is the time to build capability and resources for reopening, and UG2’s deep experience and insights have proven valuable to a range of educational clients.
Our new UG2 ReNewSM Cleaning4Health and Engineering4Health programs are designed to ensure you have what you need, well before anyone returns to campus—and long after they’re back, too.