Coronavirus: Latest information (as at 3 March 2020)

The university would like to reiterate the recommendations and assessments issued by the Robert Koch Institute and the health ministries, and emphasise that there is no cause for concern.

Since early December 2019, there has been an increase in respiratory illnesses caused by a novel coronavirus, originating in the central Chinese province of Hubei and its capital, Wuhan. The virus has spread to other countries. According to the Robert Koch Institute, the following regions are currently classified as high-risk areas: 

China: Hubei Province (including the city of Wuhan) and the cities of Wenzhou, Hangzhou, Ningbo and Taizhou in Zhejiang

Province; Iran: Ghom

Province; Italy: the Emilia-Romagna region, the Lombardy region and the city of Vo in the province of Padua in the Veneto

region; South Korea: Gyeongsangbuk-do Province (North Gyeongsang)

(https://www.rki.de/DE/Content/InfAZ/N/Neuartiges_Coronavirus/Risikogebi…)

The local health authorities responsible for Rhein-Waal University of Applied Sciences in the district of Kleve (Kleve Campus) and the district of Wesel (Kamp-Lintfort Campus) are asking anyone who has been in these regions in the past 14 days to contact them by telephone:

The local public health authority for the district of Kleve can be contacted Monday to Friday between 8.00 am and 11.00 am on 02821 85 – 311 (https://www.kreis-kleve.de/de/fachbereich5/coronavirus/).

The local public health authority for the district of Wesel can be reached on 0281 207 – 0 (https://www.kreis-wesel.de/de/dienstleistungen/infektionskrankheiten-me…).

To protect against infection, the university continues to ask that you strictly observe the hygiene measures listed below:

• Wash your hands regularly and thoroughly with soap (for at least 20 seconds)
• Keep your hands away from your face
• Cough and sneeze into the crook of your elbow, not into your hand
• Refrain from shaking hands
• Keep a distance of at least one metre from other people
• If you suspect you are unwell, stay at home and avoid contact with other people, even within your own household. Eat meals at separate times and, where possible, stay in separate rooms, whilst ensuring the rooms are regularly and thoroughly ventilated.

Members of Rhein-Waal University of Applied Sciences and visitors who have travelled from high-risk areas in the last 14 days or have been in contact with someone infected with the virus and are showing flu-like symptoms (fever, cough, breathing difficulties) should contact their GP without delay. Please inform your GP’s surgery in advance by telephone about your symptoms and the reason for your visit. Those returning from high-risk areas are advised to avoid contact with other people as far as possible during the 14-day incubation period.

As a general rule, no special preventive measures are currently required for staff, students, cooperation partners and visitors wishing to enter Germany or return here. Should this change, the University will provide information in a timely manner.

• All staff members at Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences who have been or are currently exposed to a particular risk and have serious, well-founded concerns that they may have been infected with the virus may, with a clear and comprehensible justification and in consultation with their line manager, work from home as far as possible or make alternative arrangements. The Executive Board of Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences wishes to safeguard the personal health and safety of all staff and prevent potential infections. The university expects all those involved to handle such enquiries responsibly. Line managers are welcome to contact the Human Resources Service for clarification on employment law issues in this regard.
  
   
• Students who are due to attend a compulsory module should contact the relevant lecturer – or, in the case of examinations, the relevant chair of the examination board – and also provide a clear and comprehensible explanation. An alternative date (for the examination and/or compulsory module) should then be agreed on a case-by-case basis. The Examinations Service is happy to answer any further questions on this matter.

With regard to possible general restrictions on ERASMUS programmes, residence permits, BAFÖG grants, etc., no comprehensive statements can be made at this stage. The Executive Board is in constant contact with the health authorities, the ministries and other higher education institutions on this matter.

We ask all members of the university community to keep themselves informed via the university’s website at www.hochschule-rhein-waal.de/de/aktuelles/newsmeldungen/coronavirus-akt…

The Executive Board is confident that, by acting with a shared sense of responsibility and due caution, whilst maintaining the necessary distance and objectivity and exercising sound judgement, we will all see the situation return to normal in the foreseeable future.

Furthermore, the Executive Board of Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences recommends that all members of the university community follow the latest information, travel and safety advice closely and keep abreast of developments.

• The Federal Foreign Office provides travel and safety advice. You can find this here.
• The Federal Ministry of Health provides information on the coronavirus. You can find this information here.
• The Robert Koch Institute provides up-to-date information (which can be found here) and a ‘Questions and Answers’ list (which can be found here).
• The Federal Centre for Health Education provides answers to frequently asked questions about the novel coronavirus. You can find these here.
• You can find the latest information on the coronavirus on the Kleve district website (available here) and in the latest press release.

Further information from the Federal Ministry of Health and the Robert Koch Institute can be found in the downloads section.