GuideSafe Sentinel Testing Program to include employees and students starting Tuesday, Sept. 8

Auburn’s GuideSafe Sentinel Testing program will be fully implemented on Tuesday, Sept. 8, and is currently scheduled to continue through the end of the semester. Through this program we will select random members of the Auburn University community to be tested for COVID-19 each week. This includes students and employees.This program will allow Auburn University to monitor the prevalence of COVID-19 within our campus community. This is an important aspect of our A Healthier U campus health and safety plan. By conducting random testing, we hope to monitor the asymptomatic infection rate on campus which will position us to promptly respond to developing trends.

Test Participation. Sampling for this program will occur each week and the students and employees that are selected will be asked to report for testing during the testing windows that have been defined for that specific week. Participation in the sentinel testing program is not mandatory, but it is highly encouraged. Your participation is valued. However, if the dates and times that testing is being conducted within the week that your name is selected are not convenient, you may decline. You will not be allowed to volunteer for alternate testing dates and times. However, your name might be randomly drawn again at a future date.

Invitation to Participate. The invitation to participate in the sentinel testing program will be sent from “Team Healthy” and the e-mail address will be healthy@verily.com with a subject line of “Please schedule a COVID-19 test” and will be branded by GuideSafe (see Figure 1 below). If you receive this e-mail, please click on the link that is provided. If you do not already have a Verily account, you will be asked to create one. Then, you will complete a pre-test survey and select an appointment time from the list of options that are provided.

Location of Testing and Preregistration. Sample collection will occur exclusively at the GuideSafe Sentinel Testing Site in Room 1081 (scholarship room) within the Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum on Auburn University’s main campus. This testing site is not open to the public. Testing will only be completed for individuals who have received an invitation to participate in the sentinel testing program and completed the online registration for an appointment. Identification is required. Sentinel testing is free for the participant. AU Medical Clinic is not a testing site for this program and cannot assist with scheduling appointments or collecting samples for this program. 

Testing Procedure. The testing process moves very quickly from registration to sample collection and usually takes less than 10 minutes from start to finish. After checking in, you will be asked to self-collect a mucus sample from your nose using a nasal swab. It is very important to swab thoroughly to get a good sample. It is not painful. Testing will be observed to provide information and guidance. Samples will be transported to UAB daily for analysis using PCR technology. This test is to detect active infection.

Test results are anticipated to be available within 48 to 72 hours after sample collection.  Once your results are available, you will receive an e-mail from covid19@pwnhealth.com. Employees (including student employees) who test positive should contact their supervisor immediately. The supervisor will work with the assigned COVID-19 liaison to provide guidance. Students who test positive will be directly contacted for follow up.

Questions? If you have any questions about A Healthier U’s GuideSafe Sentinel Testing Program, please e-mail the AU COVID Resource Center at covidresourcecenter@auburn.edu and include “Sentinel Testing” in the subject of the e-mail. It will be directed to the appropriate individuals. General information about GuideSafe’s Sentinel Testing Program is available here.

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Figure 1: Sample Recruitment E-mail

From: healthy@verily.com <healthy@verily.com> on behalf of Team Healthy <healthy@verily.com>
Sent: Wednesday, September 2, 2020 11:00 PM
To: XXX <xxxx1234@auburn.edu>
Subject: Please schedule a COVID-19 test

Hi XXXXX,

You've been selected to be tested for COVID-19. People are asked to do this periodically as a precautionary measure, even if they don't report having any symptoms, to ensure that your school remains safe for everyone.

Thanks!
Team Healthy

Schedule a test

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