TBSN 1 – Returning to Spring 2021 Semester

First Year TBSN Students,

We hope you are experiencing a restful winter break. We now take this time to look forward to next week as the spring semester starts. Please pay close attention to the announcements below in this email and to the campus Covid Response website.

Returning for the spring semester

  • All nursing didactic courses will remain remote to support full in-person clinical education
  • In-person clinical training in Cooper Hall and at assigned clinical sites will follow all appropriate SoN, CDC, public health and healthcare system guidelines
  • Nursing students will be expected to self-quarantine for at least seven days upon return to campus as they prepare to return to their assigned clinical sites. This applies to individuals if they have not practiced social distancing or have had contact with others outside of their immediate household or work setting without medical PPE.
  • It is recommended students be tested 3-5 days after return to campus and again 10-12 days after returning. Please follow clinical site-specific testing requirements. Of note, a ‘green’ Safer Badger badge screen will be required to participate in clinical time, starting the FIRST day of your clinical rotation.
  • It is especially important that students returning to Madison take precautions before, during and after their return.
    • Stay in your room/residence as much as possible
    • Take part only in required academic and work activities
    • Stay away from bars, restaurants and gatherings with people other than your roommates/housemates

Reporting Covid-19 exposures or positive test results

If you have been exposed to Covid-19 or have received a positive test result. Please report this using this FORM. The School of Nursing will work in partnership with you to ensure your continued success in your coursework and this information is important to those efforts.

Required testing for spring semester

  • Starting January 25, 2021, all undergraduate students living in the greater Madison area will be tested twice weekly. There will be multiple campus sites. You will also be asked to download and use the new Safer Badger App, now available in the App Store and Google.
  • Campus will do a soft launch of the Safer Badger App the week of January 25th. You will need to have green status in the App by February 1, 2021.
  • Participation in twice-a-week testing is mandatory, regardless of whether you are coming to campus for instruction or to use campus facilities.
  • Test sites:
    • Nielsen Tennis Stadium
    • Mechanical Engineering Building 
    • Grainger Hall, 21 N Park St.
    • Camp Randall Sports Center (“the Shell”)
    • Carson Gulley Center
    • Dejope Residence Hall
    • The Kohl Center
    • Health Sciences Learning Center
    • Helen C. White Hall
    • Pyle Center
    • Union South
  • Clinical training will take place in Cooper Hall and you will need to remain up to date with your testing in order to access campus buildings, including Cooper Hall in the spring. 
  • Please also make sure you are compliant with testing and any site-based surveys based on your clinical site. If you are at UW- Health or Meriter, the testing requirement for clinical learners has been amended to having a negative test within 96 hours before returning to clinical rotations. Some units require more frequent testing.
    • If at UWH-Learners should email their test results to CareerPathways@uwhealth.org, along with their program name and clinical rotation location. Also remember to complete your UWH surveys promptly.
    • If at Meriter, you are not currently required to upload your testing results. However, do keep track/record of your results, as you may be asked to present them.
  • SMMC and VA require a max of 3 days before clinical each week.

In the hour before your test:

  • Do not drink (including water)
  • Do not eat
  • Do not brush or floss your teeth, or use mouthwash
  • Do not chew gum or smoke

You may also want to rinse or gargle your mouth with water to remove any discoloration (such as from coffee) or small pieces of food. Be sure to do this at least one hour before your test.

At your test:

  • Follow these tips for producing enough saliva.
  • Pool your drool under your tongue.
  • Keep your face covering on before you begin to drool into your funnel and tube; replace it between deposits.
  • Slide the tip of your tongue along your gums behind your teeth to stimulate your salivary glands and deposit this saliva in the funnel.
  • Avoid swishing saliva in your mouth or pulling saliva from the back of your mouth.

Vaccination and PPE Update

All undergraduate students participating in clinical education in the spring are a part of the 1A level for receiving the Covid-19 vaccine. UHS has notified students on how to schedule an appointment to receive their vaccine. Please read the email from UHS carefully and act promptly. If you have not received this email, please let us know.

If your clinical assignment/unit, requires the use of an N95 mask, you will need to complete fit testing and education. Fit testing appointments and N95 masks are being coordinated.

Wisconsin’s Health Care Worker Incentive Scholarship for Covid-19 Response

Many of you have participated in the state-wide initiative to support students who worked in health care between December 1, 2020 and February 1, 2021. If you have, you must complete the UW-Madison Health Care Worker form verifying the type of work and the hours worked to the Office of Student Financial Aid by March 31, 2021.

Students who qualify will receive the $500 tuition refund by the end of the Spring 2021 semester – likely early April 2021. Students may receive only one $500 tuition refund regardless of number of hours worked beyond the 50-hour minimum.

Questions about receiving the tuition refund at UW-Madison should be directed to the Office of Student Financial Aid – finaid@finaid.wisc.edu, (608)262-3060.

We are looking to seeing you all again next week!