Jan 23 COVID-19 update

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COVID-19 testing changes

The Ministry of Health (MOH) recently made changes to the COVID-19 testing protocols for healthcare providers, and KAUST is changing the protocol to align with these changes:

  1. KAUST Health will test symptomatic people following a decision tree outlined by the MOH that is designed to screen out less severe cases. We continue to find approximately 50% of the people with symptoms tested are positive for COVID-19, and those with symptoms are more likely to transmit to others. It is therefore critical that anyone with symptoms listed in the Keeping KAUST Safe guidelines, whether it is suspected to be COVID-19, flu, or cold, contact KAUST Health and avoid contact with others.
  2. Those that are asymptomatic will no longer be tested.
  3. Travel PCRs for those needing a PCR test for travel or other personal reasons remain available and can be scheduled by using the PCR Testing form.
  4. The Saudi FDA and MOH have approved the use of home testing kits. Efforts are being made to ramp up the availability of these kits, which are available to the community for purchase from sources such as Nahdi pharmacy. KAUST is also looking into the option of providing a limited supply of testing kits to each household.
  5. KAUST’s Tier 1b strategy emphasizing controls and mitigations such as distancing, use of face coverings, and vaccinating whenever eligible will continue. It remains important that we all follow the Keeping KAUST Safe guidelines to limit the spread.

Register your COVID-19 booster 

To retain a Tawakkalna ‘immune’ status, you are required to receive a COVID-19 booster vaccine a minimum of three months after your second dose.  If a second vaccine (first for J&J) was more than eight months ago on February 1, then unless a booster dose has been received, from February 1, the Tawakkalna status will no longer show ‘immune’ and you will be non-compliant.Anyone needing a booster that has not already been scheduled through KAUST Health must schedule the booster through Tawakkalna or Sehhaty in a regional site as there are no additional vaccine doses currently in KAUST Health and no timeline to receive more supplies.  

All KAUST residents, employees and students aged 16 and over who have so far received a COVID-19 booster outside of KAUST Health are required to complete the vaccine monitoring form registering their vaccination with KAUST.

No action is required for anyone who received their booster dose in KAUST Health.

Anyone who has not met this requirement as of February 1 must not go to the workplace, classroom, or any business/facility in KAUST, and the appropriate administrative unit will be following up.

Vaccines for children aged 5-11 years old

Many children aged 5 – 11 have received a first vaccine dose in Jeddah this weekend. Appointments remain available for those who require them through Sehhaty and Tawakkalna. 

KAUST still hopes to be able to make these specific vaccines available and is awaiting confirmation of this. However, parents should not wait for KAUST Health to receive vaccine as there is no timeline to receive them in KAUST and the priority should be placed on getting children vaccinated since this is the best mitigation for COVID-19.

If your child/children have received a vaccine, please remember to update this information via the vaccine monitoring form.

Face Covering Guidance Updated

With the wide spread of Omicron, the use of face coverings and respirators is being revisited globally. The Keeping KAUST Safe Face Covering guidance has been updated to include recent changes & best practices. The use of N95 respirators is included as an option for the general public to consider when selecting a face covering.

The recommendation for the general public of KAUST is to always select a face covering that fits well and that you will wear consistently. Other considerations should include the protective level of the face covering/respirator, vaccination status, group size, proximity and other controls in place. While face coverings are a valuable control, they are most effective when used in conjunction with the other Keeping KAUST Safe measures, including getting your vaccination and booster when eligible, practicing physical distancing, and reporting illness.

January 23 COVID-19 update

As of January 23, there were 214 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed at KAUST since the last bulletin on January 16.

Case numbers have declined over the past seven days, although there has been an elevation in numbers due to the pre-return to TKS testing that took place over the weekend.

Positive cases continue to originate from a mixture of sources, with the majority resulting from people with symptoms and from in-household contact tracing. Cases also continue to include fully vaccinated adults and children who have not yet been vaccinated. 

For the most up-to-date information, please check the KAUST COVID-19 Dashboard.
The 14-day positivity rate* at KAUST is currently 13.3% as of January 23, 2022.

We remind all community members that we are currently operating in Keeping KAUST Safe Tier 1B. If you have symptoms, please stay home and call KAUST Health at 012 808 0940.

* Positivity rate = % of positive tests returned from the total number of tests taken during a 14-day period.
Excludes where the result is still pending or the swab was rejected.
** This rate will only be displayed if the number of tests conducted achieves a given significant threshold (724 tests). Over the past 14-day period, 3,600 tests were conducted, with 480 positive cases.

KAUST COVID-19 Dashboard
COVID-19 vaccination tracker

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