Event Title
Forward Together: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Mitigating COVID-19 Outbreaks at One of the Nation’s Most Diverse Universities
Start Date
28-6-2021 10:10 AM
End Date
28-6-2021 10:55 AM
Topic
Mitigating Outbreaks
Session Chair
Samantha Friedman
Abstract
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, decisions surrounding educational institutions have been a central public concern. In this proof-of-concept case study, we focus on response and mitigation decision-making at the University at Albany, State University of New York (UAlbany)— one of the most diverse public universities in the United States. We first explore the role of best practices and data-driven insights from the emergency management and public health fields in informing key decisions amidst rapidly-shifting science and policies. We then reflect on the health outcomes of UAlbany’s approach in the context of COVID-19’s differential impacts on minority communities. In May of 2020, following a significant surge of cases throughout the spring, NYS and the rest of the U.S. gradually began to reopen. Epidemiological data on SARS-CoV2 indicate an incubation period of up to 14 days and a higher likelihood of asymptomatic spread among children, adolescents, and young adults. Concerns mounted over bringing students back to campuses where they would be more likely to interact in congregated settings while potentially not knowing that they were infected with SARS-CoV2. Institutions of higher education needed to build plans and make decisions that would mitigate the impact on their campuses and surrounding communities. We apply a cognitive-institutional process-tracing methodology to explore key mitigation strategies that have helped support UAlbany’s students, faculty, and staff. The analysis is based on primary source information collected throughout the response, including 201 routine situation reports and minutes from 180+ meetings of key groups of stakeholders and/or decision-makers. We identified six key occasions for decision: 1. Building recommendations on incorporating epidemiological and operational data into decision-making and communication. 2. Overcoming potential barriers to surveillance testing and more flexible decision-making benchmarks. 3. Defining strategies for mitigating the secondary impacts of an aggressive testing and isolation/quarantine policy on students, especially given the potential for an outsized impact on vulnerable populations. 4. Pivoting operations and communications based on emerging State guidance as the fall semester began. 5. Responding to a surge in cases in late fall. 6. Planning for the spring semester given lessons learned from the fall and an anticipated higher rate of community transmission. To examine the potential impact of the University’s response on public health outcomes, we conduct a quantitative analysis of data from 475 responses to the University’s internal contact tracing survey. We focus specifically on the relative impact across racial and ethnic groups. Our results indicate that there may have been a differential impact on minority groups in terms of who contracted the virus. That said, a significantly lower proportion of non-Hispanic Black respondents reported symptoms than did non-Hispanic White or Hispanic students. Our decision analysis reveals a potential model for institutions of higher education to effectively engage experts across disciplines in crisis decision-making. Since we conducted the analysis at the advisory level (rather than the level of the decision-maker), we were also able to explore strategies for enhancing the role of the scientific community in broader emergency response. While there was not significant data to connect decision-making with public health outcomes, an initial analysis indicates interesting trends in health impacts among minority communities that merit further study.
Document Type
Extended Abstract
Forward Together: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Mitigating COVID-19 Outbreaks at One of the Nation’s Most Diverse Universities
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, decisions surrounding educational institutions have been a central public concern. In this proof-of-concept case study, we focus on response and mitigation decision-making at the University at Albany, State University of New York (UAlbany)— one of the most diverse public universities in the United States. We first explore the role of best practices and data-driven insights from the emergency management and public health fields in informing key decisions amidst rapidly-shifting science and policies. We then reflect on the health outcomes of UAlbany’s approach in the context of COVID-19’s differential impacts on minority communities. In May of 2020, following a significant surge of cases throughout the spring, NYS and the rest of the U.S. gradually began to reopen. Epidemiological data on SARS-CoV2 indicate an incubation period of up to 14 days and a higher likelihood of asymptomatic spread among children, adolescents, and young adults. Concerns mounted over bringing students back to campuses where they would be more likely to interact in congregated settings while potentially not knowing that they were infected with SARS-CoV2. Institutions of higher education needed to build plans and make decisions that would mitigate the impact on their campuses and surrounding communities. We apply a cognitive-institutional process-tracing methodology to explore key mitigation strategies that have helped support UAlbany’s students, faculty, and staff. The analysis is based on primary source information collected throughout the response, including 201 routine situation reports and minutes from 180+ meetings of key groups of stakeholders and/or decision-makers. We identified six key occasions for decision: 1. Building recommendations on incorporating epidemiological and operational data into decision-making and communication. 2. Overcoming potential barriers to surveillance testing and more flexible decision-making benchmarks. 3. Defining strategies for mitigating the secondary impacts of an aggressive testing and isolation/quarantine policy on students, especially given the potential for an outsized impact on vulnerable populations. 4. Pivoting operations and communications based on emerging State guidance as the fall semester began. 5. Responding to a surge in cases in late fall. 6. Planning for the spring semester given lessons learned from the fall and an anticipated higher rate of community transmission. To examine the potential impact of the University’s response on public health outcomes, we conduct a quantitative analysis of data from 475 responses to the University’s internal contact tracing survey. We focus specifically on the relative impact across racial and ethnic groups. Our results indicate that there may have been a differential impact on minority groups in terms of who contracted the virus. That said, a significantly lower proportion of non-Hispanic Black respondents reported symptoms than did non-Hispanic White or Hispanic students. Our decision analysis reveals a potential model for institutions of higher education to effectively engage experts across disciplines in crisis decision-making. Since we conducted the analysis at the advisory level (rather than the level of the decision-maker), we were also able to explore strategies for enhancing the role of the scientific community in broader emergency response. While there was not significant data to connect decision-making with public health outcomes, an initial analysis indicates interesting trends in health impacts among minority communities that merit further study.
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The recording of this presentation ends at 1:54:07