Jan. 31 - Booster importance, documentation due
Section 1
A rose by any other school is still a rose. Just ask this pink ornamental outside the School of Social Ecology. Photo by Steve Zylius / UCI
UCI ANNOUNCEMENTS AND NEWS
In the latest UCI COVID Minute, Dr. Susan Huang, professor of infectious diseases and medical director of epidemiology & infection prevention, answers this question: Can I skip the COVID-19 booster if I’ve been vaccinated and already had COVID-19?
Deadline reminder: COVID-19 booster documentation due today
Besides marking the return to in-person instruction, today is the deadline for uploading your booster documentation.
Student Health Portal is where a student uploads a vaccination booster record.
Occupational Health Portal is where an employee uploads a booster verification.
Other helpful sites:
On-campus booster vaccination clinics for students, faculty and staff in February.
Vaccines and boosters page outlines campus policy and steps to get vaccinated.
UCI Forward for the latest information on COVID-19 and the campus response.
Campus testing site for instructions on dropping in or getting an appointment, plus testing locations.
Isolation and quarantine page for instructions on what to do if you test positive.
Prevention guidelines for steps you can take to reduce your chance of infection.
COVID-19 cases on campus trending downward
UCI had 327 cases last week, 501 the week before, 1,018 the week before that and 1,696 the week before that. The seven-day testing positivity rate as of this morning was 5.19%.
Exhibits give glimpses of America and Orange County during World War II era
Coinciding with the Jan. 27 commemoration of International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Sue Parks, president and CEO of Orange County United Way, interviewed two guests from UCI about two different campus exhibitions. University Librarian Lorelei Tanji previewed the “Americans and the Holocaust” traveling exhibit and Krystal Tribbett, curator for Orange County regional history, promoted “Snapshots of Orange County in the 1940s: Spaces, Places, Faces.” Both open Wednesday in Jack Langson Library, with “Americans and the Holocaust” closing on March 9 and “Snapshots of Orange County in the 1940s” continuing through the fall.
UCI researchers discover cause, develop treatment for reducing vision loss
The team discovered that the absence of a key protein can lead to cell death in the retina and ultimately vision loss. The researchers, whose findings are published in this month’s Journal of Clinical Investigation Insight, also discovered a pharmacological combination that can help preserve the retina’s structure and function as well as improve vision.
UCI Health ICUs honored with Beacon Award for Excellence
The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses has awarded UCI Medical Center’s surgical and neuroscience intensive care units the silver Beacon Award for Excellence. Recognizing caregivers who successfully improve patient outcomes and meet healthy work environment standards, the Beacon Award has now been bestowed three consecutive times to the surgical ICU and two straight times to the neuroscience ICU.
UC NEWS AND GENERAL NEWS
CDC data shows the power of boosters
Looking at weekly average deaths from COVID-19 per 100,000 people in 25 jurisdictions between October and November, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 7.8 were unvaccinated, 0.6 were vaccinated but had no booster shot and 0.1 had the booster. “Once you get a booster, your risk of getting severely ill from COVID is tiny,” reports The New York Times. “It is quite small even if you are older or have health problems.”
US gives full approval to Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine
The Food and Drug Administration today granted full approval to Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine, which has already been given to tens of millions of Americans since its emergency authorization more than a year ago. The FDA granted full approval of Pfizer’s vaccine last August.
EVENTS
Are Non-Profit Events a Thing of the Past? How Event Fundraising has Changed
Wednesday, 11 a.m. (sponsored by Division of Continuing Education)
Virtual Community Service & Leadership Fair
Wednesday, 11 a.m. (sponsored by Office of Campus Organizations & Volunteer Programs)
Chronic Disease Prevention and FRESH 101
Wednesday, 3 p.m. (sponsored by FRESH Basic Needs Hub)
Visit today.uci.edu to see and submit event listings. Events of general interest will be shared in UCI Digest two days before they occur.
UCI IN THE NEWS
Note: Some news sites require subscriptions to read articles. The UCI Libraries offer free subscriptions to The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Orange County Register and The Washington Post for students, faculty and staff.
UC return to campus riven by conflicting pressures over in-person vs. remote classes
Los Angeles Times, Jan. 31
Cited: Hal S. Stern, provost and executive vice chancellor
Omicron drives US deaths higher than in fall’s delta wave
Associated Press, Jan. 27
Cited: Andrew Noymer, epidemiologist and associate professor of public health
Plastic products could be contributing to weight gain, new study finds
KNX News (audio), Jan. 27
Guest: Bruce Blumberg, professor of developmental and cell biology
COVID-19 NOTIFICATION AND RESOURCES
100 new campus cases
Twenty-four employees and 76 students tested positive for COVID-19 from Friday through Sunday. For more information, visit the UCI COVID-19 dashboard.
Upload your vaccine and booster records
Potential workplace exposure
UCI provides this notification of a potential workplace COVID-19 exposure. Employees and subcontractors who were in these locations on the dates listed may have been exposed to the coronavirus. You may be entitled to various benefits under applicable federal and state laws and University-specific policies and agreements. The full notification is available on the UCI Forward site. If you have been identified as a close contact to a COVID-19 case, the UCI Contact Tracing Program will contact you and provide additional direction.
For COVID-19 questions
UCI Forward - information on campus status and operational updates
UCI Health COVID-19 Updates - important information related to UCI Health
UCI Coronavirus Response Center - available at covid19@uci.edu or via phone at (949) 824-9918
Contact Tracing and Vaccine Navigation Services - assistance with vaccines and vaccine uploads; available at contacttracing@uci.edu or via phone at (949) 824-2300
Program in Public Health chatline - answers to questions about COVID-19
For questions specific to your personal health situation, please contact your doctor or healthcare provider.