Reporting COVID-19 cases, symptoms or exposures at NIC
If you are a student at NIC and have tested positive for COVID-19, had close contact with someone with COVID-19 or are experiencing symptoms:- Do not attend in-person classes or come to campus. Go home and email StudentHealth@nic.edu, providing details of your situation. Be sure to include the phone number where you can be reached. Wait for further instructions. A member of the NIC Student Monitoring and Support Team will call you during regular business hours: Monday to Thursday 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Fridays 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
- If you are a Health Professions student, please email hpnstudentcovidreporting@nic.edu with your information and someone will respond to you as soon as possible, including outside normal business hours.
Learn more about what do if you are sick and about notifying people you have been in close contact with.
What is Close Contact?
- You were within 6 feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes.
- You had DIRECT PHYSICAL CONTACT with a person (e.g., hugging, handshaking, kissing, sharing a living space or providing care of a COVID-19 positive person)
- You SHARED eating or drinking utensils, straws, food/ drinks with this person.
- You came into contact with their RESPIRATORY SECRETIONS (e.g., they coughed or sneezed on you).
IMPORTANT: Close contact is not only a duration of 15 minutes or more at one time, but a cumulative effect of 15 minutes of close contact with the same person during the same day.
Mask wearing does not factor into close contact, but does reduce the risk of transmission.
Daily Health Self-Check
To prevent the spread of illness and to reduce the risk of exposure to the NIC campus community, students are required to monitor their own health on a daily basis before coming to campus and follow, at all times, the college’s health and safety protocols, which includes reporting COVID-19 symptoms, possible exposures and positive tests.People with COVID-19 have a wide range of symptoms, ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus.
Take your temperature and monitor your health daily. You may use the CDC’s Self Checker or answer the following:
Do you have any of the following COVID-19 symptoms?
- Fever of 100.4 degrees or have chills
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Fatigue
- Muscle or body aches
- New loss of taste or smell
- Sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Headache
If you have any of these symptoms, do not attend in-person classes or come to campus. Email the information to StudentHealth@nic.edu, or if you are a Health Professions student, email your information to hpnstudentcovidreporting@nic.edu.
When to Seek Emergency Medical Attention
Look for emergency warning signs for COVID-19. If you or someone you know show any of these signs, seek emergency medical care immediately:- Trouble breathing
- Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
- Confusion
- Inability to wake or stay awake
- Bluish lips or face
If it’s an emergency medical situation, don’t hesitate. Call 911 and notify the operator that you are seeking care for yourself or someone who has or may have COVID-19 with emergency warning symptoms.
Quarantine: If you have been around someone with COVID-19
Who needs to quarantine?Anyone who has been in close contact (within 6 feet of someone for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period) with someone with COVID-19 should stay home for 10 days after their last exposure to that person.
There are some exceptions:
- Fully vaccinated individuals who have had close contact with someone with COVID-19 and show no symptoms of COVID-19 do not need to stay home.
However, fully vaccinated people should get tested 3 to 5 days after their exposure, even if they don’t have symptoms, and they should wear a mask indoors in public for 14 days following exposure or until their test result is negative. - Someone who has had COVID-19 within the previous 3 months and has recovered and remains without COVID-19 symptoms (for example, cough, shortness of breath) does not need to stay home (quarantine).
How to quarantine:
- Stay home for 10 days after your last contact with a person who has COVID-19.
- Watch for fever (100.4◦F), cough, shortness of breath, or other symptoms of COVID-19.
- If possible, stay away from people you live with, especially people who are at higher risk for getting very sick from COVID-19.
Isolation: If you have tested positive for COVID-19
Isolation is used to separate people infected with COVID-19 from those who are not infected.People who are in isolation should stay home until it’s safe for them to be around others. At home, anyone sick or infected should separate from others, stay in a specific “sick room” or area, and use a separate bathroom (if available).
What to do:- Monitor your symptoms. If you have an emergency warning sign (including trouble breathing), seek emergency medical care immediately.
- Stay in a separate room from other household members, if possible.
- Use a separate bathroom, if possible.
- Avoid contact with other members of the household and pets.
- Don’t share personal household items, like cups, towels, and utensils.
- Wear a mask when around other people if able.
If you think or know you have COVID-19, and you have symptoms
You can be around others after:
- 10 days since symptoms first appeared and
- 24 hours with no fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and
- Other symptoms of COVID-19 are improving
Symptomatic students who test negative for COVID, and have no known exposure to COVID, are able to return sooner than 10 days with a physician’s note.
Note that these recommendations do not apply to people with severe COVID-19 or with weakened immune systems (immunocompromised).
Student Privacy
In all instances, and as per the CDC Confidentiality and Consent Guidelines, North Idaho College will work to maintain the privacy and confidentiality of those students who report possible exposure or test results for COVID-19 and those who may be part of any contact tracing efforts.Definitions
Physical Distancing - Keeping at least 6 feet of space between yourself and others (indoors and outdoors). Physical distancing does not replace the need to wear cloth face coverings, practice good hygiene behavior, or good cleaning and disinfecting protocols.Self-Isolation - Separation and restricting movement of COVID-19 positive individuals, those who may have been exposed to a COVID-19 positive individual or those who are exhibiting symptoms.
Contact Tracing - An effective disease control strategy that helps interrupt disease transmission. Contact tracing involves working with an individual who has confirmed COVID-19 and the close contacts of that individual. Close contacts may need to self-isolate if there is concern of exposure. The privacy and confidentiality rights of a confirmed case and close contacts will be maintained at all times.
Updated Aug. 20, 2021