[Coral-List] ICRS Covid Precautions

mariajung89 at t-online.de mariajung89 at t-online.de
Tue Jun 28 08:13:45 UTC 2022


   Dear Kristen,
   Thanks for sharing. I think it is very important to raise these
   points.
   FYI - public tests will no longer be free from 1 July, there will be a
   3aNOT fee per test. I'd recommend buying them at the supermarkets
   instead where they're about half the price at the moment.
   It is unclear to me how much the organisers will encourage mask wearing
   and social distancing on site since it is no longer 'mandatory'. Which,
   in my opinion, doesn't mean that we should forget about these
   measures.
   I've just recently been to a conference in Spain where all organisers
   constantly reminded people to wear masks and of course also wore them
   themselves. Sadly not too many were interested (especially during the
   poster sessions) and it has become a super spreader event, yet it is
   important to give a good example. I can only hope that attendees in
   Bremen will take this more seriously to protect the vulnerable.
   Cheers,
   Maria
   Am 24.06.2022 17:54 schrieb Kristen Marhaver via Coral-List
   <coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov>:

     Dear Colleagues,
     Regarding the covid precautions at ICRS 2022, a few folks wrote
     off-list
     and asked me to share what I learned.
     The organizers provided some information over email and I appreciate
     their
     candid exchange (even if I was disappointed at the answers).
     ICRS created a new page listing the covid precautions:
     https://www.icrs2022.de/guidelines/covid-19.
     The main precautions are that ICRS will provide attendees with free
     masks
     and they recommend daily self testing, e.g, at free test centers 1-2
     km
     from the conference center.
     The answers to my specific questions were:
     Is proof of vaccination required: No. (Organizers say they have no
     practical way to check this, and that unvaccinated are part of a
     diverse
     audience.)
     Are negative tests required at registration: No. (Organizers
     recommend
     daily self testing instead.)
     Are masks required: No. (Free masks are provided. But organizers say
     they
     cannot require something the German government no longer requires.)
     Is free daily testing available onsite: No. (Organizers recommend
     using
     local test centers 1-2 km away.)
     Are distancing guidelines in place: Distancing is not required. (It
     is up
     to the individual.)
     How will CO2 be monitored and how will rooms be ventilated? The
     venue
     will use the "maximum aeration" possible.
     Is registration refundable for folks who test positive in the week
     prior to
     the event? As far as I can tell, no.
     Note there is no guarantee fellow attendees will be negative at the
     start
     of the conference.
     Will this be sufficient to protect our community from covid? Here's
     an
     example from an emergency medicine conference that became a
     superspreader
     event when precautions were left to the individual:
     https://www.statnews.com/2022/06/14/the-irony-and-ignominy-of-medica
     l-conferences-as-superspreader-events/
     .
     And beyond the immediate risk, what message have we sent to the
     community?
     Parents of young children as well as pregnant, older, and
     immunocompromised
     folks are essentially being told that career exposure and
     advancement means
     taking unnecessary risks with their children's health, or their own.
     Given the risk landscape, let's openly acknowledge that a large
     portion of
     our community doesn't feel safe attending, and many folks feel
     disappointed
     and sorrowful at the lost opportunity. With covid increasingly
     evading our
     immunity (and with monkeypox and polio now circulating) let's also
     commit
     to working harder to protect each other in the future. The most
     cautious,
     careful folks in coral science won't be at the event, but we need
     their
     contributions as much as any!
     With hugs,
     Kristen
     --
     On Fri, Jun 17, 2022 at 8:56 AM Kristen Marhaver
     <kristenmarhaver at gmail.com>
     wrote:
     > Dear Colleagues,
     >
     > Might it be possible to find out the covid precautions in place
     for ICRS
     > 2022? (I couldn't find them on the conference website.)
     >
     > Is proof of vaccination required, are negative tests required at
     > registration, are masks required, is free daily testing available
     onsite,
     > are distancing guidelines in place? How will CO2 be monitored and
     how will
     > rooms be ventilated? Is registration refundable for folks who test
     positive
     > in the week prior to the event?
     >
     > I attended a conference with most of these precautions in place
     and a
     > less-infectious, less-immune-evasive variant circulating, and
     5-10% of
     > folks still caught covid and many were unable to board their
     flights back
     > to the US. I would imagine I'm not the only person wondering about
     > the precautions in place for BA.4 and BA.5.
     >
     > With curiosity,
     > Kristen Marhaver
     >
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