Update from College Secretary and Director, College Health Service to students and staff

5 March 2021

Dear students and colleagues

This week the number of COVID-19 patients in hospital and ICU reduced, case numbers were at a lower number and the R number remained below 1 (indicating that we are making progress in supressing the virus). All of these are positive signs that your efforts are making a difference, thank you.

However, we must remember how infectious and easy it is to transmit the new variants of COVID-19 so we cannot let our guard down now. Please continue to protect yourself and others in our community. That includes wearing a face covering, maintain physical distance, and adhere to health and safety guidelines.

Controlled access to campus

To gain access to the campus, all staff and students must present a valid ID card to swipe in on arrival and swipe out on departure. The safety and well-being of our College community is maximized if we ensure that the campus is open only to those who need to be here. This includes:

• Residents           
• Essential researchers (as submitted by Head of School/Unit) 
• Students with pre-booked time slot in the Libraries/Study Spaces 
• Students with a timetabled in person teaching event
• Essential staff (as submitted by Head of School/Unit) 
• Pre-approved visitor.

Access is via the Lincoln Place Gate and the Nassau Street Entrance.

Support services for staff

Trinity’s Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) is a confidential and free counselling service for staff and their immediate families (those living at home with them who are 18 yrs+). This facility is designed as a means for staff to resolve any personal or work-related concerns, in confidence. You can receive immediate support, advice and information on a wide range of emotional, personal or work-related issues. Telephone Counselling is available where practical and suitable to the issue. The number for this service is 1800 817 433.

This service also offers a dedicated online EAP Support Hub where you can find useful information, articles, e-zines, self-assessment tools and much more to help staff manage their mental health, such as wellbeing information in response to COVID-19 and expert information on a number of issues – with expert advice on how to deal with them and how they affect you at work.

HR’s Working from Home webpage has useful information and tips on staying healthy, IT secure working, e-Worker tax relief, guidelines for managers and more, while HR’s Learning and Development offerings for this year can be viewed at Wellness and Resilience programme.

Bookable student spaces for 1 hour 45 mins

You can book a seat for the Library, for an online class/study space or a student breakout space as per the updated list below for a maximum of 1 hour 45 minutes. The Public Theatre (Exam Hall) is now open on Saturdays and the TBSI Zón Mac Léinn space has re-opened (in addition to the TBSI Knowledge Exchange).

Public Health has advised that if an individual were to develop COVID-19, any person who has spent a period of more than two hours in an enclosed space with that person would be considered a close contact and would be required to be tested as a close contact at day 0 and day 10 and have to restrict their movements, i.e. stay at home until after their day 10 result is back and is negative. In order to reduce this risk, College has arranged for booking systems to limit individuals to a maximum of 1 hour 45 minutes at a workstation. The individual then takes a 15 minutes break outside before moving to their next ‘booking’ which is another workstation elsewhere in College. This is for the safety of our students and staff.

TriniScreen pilot - screening for people without symptoms

We’d like to remind you that the TriniScreen pilot of free weekly screening tests on a voluntary basis is available to residents in Trinity Hall and on campus. Key groups of staff such as College Health, Day Nursery, Estates and Facilities and others can also avail of this screening and have been contacted directly. Triniscreen will be rolled out to staff and students in TBSI going into labs and practicals shortly. Triniscreen involves testing self-collected saliva samples for COVID-19. Anybody who tests positive will be informed of the result by College Health who will arrange a consultation with a College Health GP to decide on further action.

Stay safe. Stay well. Bígí slán agus sábháilte.

Kind regards,

John Coman, Secretary to the College
Seán Ó Comáin, Rúnaí an Choláiste

Dr David McGrath, Director, College Health Service
An Dr Daithi Mac Craith, Stiúrthóir, Seirbhís Sláinte an Choláiste