You’ll see blue posters promoting general guidelines for protecting yourself and others from getting sick around both our campuses today, issued by the World Health Organization. These including guidelines on washing your hands with soap and running water or hand sanitizer after coughing or sneezing, and covering your mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing.
We have some hand sanitiser stations at both our campuses with a larger supply due to arrive on Friday – getting supplies has been challenging given the current demand.
There have been no reported cases of coronavirus in New Zealand to date, but the New Zealand Government has imposed temporary entry restrictions for travellers to safeguard against the spread of the virus, as we updated you on yesterday.
We will continue to take our guidance and information from official channels and websites, including the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization, and would urge you to do the same, rather than heeding unsubstantiated advice from unofficial channels. Please note that face masks have not been identified as an official measure to safeguard against the spread of the virus, so we will not be issuing these as standard practice.
Our International Advisory Team is continuing to work closely with our International students who have been delayed in China and are monitoring the effect on students’ ability to attend classes.
James Oldfield and Lisa Simperingham from Te Puna Ako have joined our Incident Management Team to support Tracy Chapman, Director of International Success, in providing guidance for teachers in ways they can support their learners from a distance. More information will be issued on this in coming days.
Our Te Puna Waiora team is preparing care packages for those International students who have already arrived in New Zealand but are currently in quarantine, until they have completed their 14-day mandatory stand down period. These packages will include online supermarket vouchers, toiletries and dedicated support contacts.
We will continue to keep you updated on the latest developments on a daily basis, as well as additional measures to support and manage the impact on your staff and students.
This is a time of heightened anxiety and stress for many people, so please act with kindness and compassion in your dealings with those who may be impacted. In light of recent news reports around racist sentiment, we would like to take this opportunity to remind all staff and students of our zero tolerance towards racial harassment or behaviour of any kind, as outlined in our Code of Conduct, and we encourage anyone who witnesses or experiences any such behaviour to follow the Speak Up process and seek support.
Please make sure you review our updated FAQs and encourage any of your students with questions to contact either the Helpline on 0800 10 75 10 (from within New Zealand) or internationalsupport@unitec.ac.nz for International students.
Previous updates published on the Nest:
- Coronavirus: Update – Monday 3 February 2020
- Coronavirus: What you need to know to protect yourself and our students – 29 January 2020