As UMKC has welcomed back students —some returning from previous years and others incoming freshmen— it has also called them to take responsibility for their health. In an attempt to make self-monitoring easier on students, UMKC has introduced a new app called Campus Screen.
UMKC has offered the use of Campus Screen to help students and faculty track symptoms while they transition back to school and begin to attend various events across campus.
“Campus Screen is another tool our students, faculty and staff can use to monitor their own personal health and keep our community safe,” said Sheri Gormley, executive director of strategic initiatives in the chancellor’s office. “In addition to a thermometer, the app helps people routinely evaluate their current health risks and possible symptoms so they can make decisions such as staying home and calling a health-care provider.”
Campus Screen is simple. Users complete a new screening everyday, as symptoms can develop quickly. The app asks several questions, including whether the user has experienced possible COVID-19 symptoms recently, traveled internationally in the last 14 days, or had contact with anybody who has experienced symptoms. After answering the four questions, users can immediately get results through the app.
If users aren’t currently experiencing symptoms, haven’t travelled internationally or haven’t been in contact with someone who displayed those symptoms, they get a “campus pass.” Users can show the pass to enter events on campus, or simply to provide their own peace of mind. The pass expires at 11:59 p.m. on the day the quiz is taken.
However, if users answer that they have any of the emergency symptoms, such as difficulty breathing, the app will prompt them to call 911. If users report they’ve travelled internationally or experienced more benign symptoms, such as a cough, the app will prompt them to stay home and call a healthcare provider.
The app isn’t foolproof. Someone could easily bypass all of the questions by answering no regardless of the facts, which would give them the “campus pass” to enter events.
With all the other guidelines in place, however, the app isn’t the only way to keep people safe on campus. While Campus Screen is a great way for students and faculty to keep track of symptoms and can be a good indicator of when they should get serious and go get tested, the university continues to recommend wearing a mask and following all social distancing guidelines both on campus and off.
