Designated COVID-19 Point of Contact (POC)

Maintaining Healthy Environments > Designated COVID-19 Point of Contact

It is recommended schools designate a staff person, such as the school nurse and/or school administrator, to be responsible for responding to COVID-19 concerns and ensure related safety practices and procedures are implemented appropriately. It is logical that the school nurse perform this duty, due to their knowledge of public health and the school community. All school staff and families should know who this person is, their role and how to contact them.

Key Considerations:

Serve as the point of contact when a student or staff member displays signs of illness and needs to be excused from the classroom, cohort/pod or area within the school.
Develop and implement safety plans and procedures to address
- Escorting students to the designated isolation room/area until transportation can be arranged to send the student(s) home or to seek emergency medical attention.
- Isolation of multiple students at one time.
- Notification of parent(s), guardians, or caregiver(s) of ill student(s) that need to be picked up from school.
- Identifying all exposed area(s) (e.g., classroom), and recommending cleaning and disinfection of areas is performed by appropriate staff.
Develop a plan to support staff and students quarantining for the appropriate length of time and returning to school after meeting criteria for ending home isolation.
Work with local health officials to assess transmission levels and support contact tracing efforts and monitor COVID-19 policies and mandates including those related to quarantine.
Develop a plan to ensure close contacts are identified, notified, advised to stay home, and to consult with their healthcare provider as appropriate to determine if testing is recommended.
Communicate with teacher(s), staff, and parent(s), guardian(s) or caregiver(s) the importance of COVID-19 mitigation strategies (e.g., staying home when sick, washing hands, wearing masks, social distancing).