General Updates
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Will I be quarantined when I arrive in Antigua?
If you have tested negative for COVID-19 per the official guidelines of Antigua and Barbuda and can present documentation showing that you are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, you will not have to quarantine upon entering the country.
Arriving passengers who test positive for COVID-19 will be isolated per guidelines from the Ministry of Health Officials. Read Antigua & Barbuda’s official travel advisory for more information.
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Do I need to be tested before my flight, even if I am vaccinated?
Please refer to the latest travel advisory from Antigua & Barbuda here.
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Will the Spring 2024 academic period be on campus?
Yes. Students who apply and are accepted to AUA’s Spring 2024 class will join their fellow students, as well as AUA faculty and staff, on our Preclinical Sciences campus in Antigua.
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Do I need to be fully vaccinated to attend classes in Antigua?
Effective as of January 15, 2023, while AUA strongly recommends that students be fully vaccinated against the COVID -19 virus, including all CDC recommended boosters, the University will not require students to be so vaccinated. However, because, at present, most of the University’s clinical affiliated teaching hospitals require that students be fully vaccinated before they will be permitted to engage in training at those affiliated hospitals, unvaccinated students will be limited in where they will be able to complete their clinical clerkship training and may find it difficult, more costly and/or more inconvenient, if not impossible, to complete the requirements for graduation, timely or at all. As part of its curricular requirements, the University requires its preclinical students to participate in clinical training at St. John’s Hospital, the only hospital in Antigua. Presently, St. John’s Medical Center requires that students be fully vaccinated before they are permitted to train there. AUA will endeavor to provide training as comparable as is reasonable in lieu of the training requirement at St. Johns.
On-Campus
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What specific facilities will I have access to on campus?
AUA’s gymnasium, library, food court, study areas, and small group rooms are all available to students on campus. These areas are maintaining strict social distancing guidelines.
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What should I do if I start showing COVID-19 symptoms in Antigua?
If you start displaying symptoms, call the 24/7 COVID-19 hotline at Mount St. John’s Medical Centre at 268-462-6843. Medical staff answer calls at any time and can direct you to the appropriate resources. You can also contact the AUA Health Clinic via email at [email protected] for guidance.
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What is Antigua doing to make the island safe?
The latest travel info can be found here.
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How do we get groceries, etc while in quarantine?
There are apps where you can order groceries and have them delivered.
a) Chase Distributors – [email protected]
Telephone: (268) 726-1114
Whats app: 786-1114
Contact – Jamahl Chaseb) Cospro –
Telephone: (268) 781-5403
Whats App ONLY Office: (268) 562-9090c) AllMart – Local Marketplace App in Play Store
d) PayMeal/Packed – Download app, uses US cc and delivers from Epi
e) Goddard Catering Group – available for meal deliveries and pickup.
WhatsApp or call: 4648951
Email: [email protected]f) Brydens – Place orders online for delivery
Website: https://brydensantiguahomechef.comg) Quik-Serve – Delivers from 40 restaurants
Website: https://www.quik-serve.com -
What do I do when my quarantine is up?Â
Please contact the clinic after arriving on island so they can schedule you for a COVID Antigen test after your quarantine is over. On the day of the appointment, you are required to complete the COVID web-based training video online (You will need to go to the AUA portal. Enter your wifi login credentials to gain access.)
You also need to complete the online AUA Covid Self-Test here. Please take the questionnaire seriously and answer truthfully. DO NOT EXPOSE OTHERS IF YOU HAVE ANY SYMPTOMS OR EXPOSURE RISKS. It is imperative for the safety of those on campus.
When you arrive on campus, the guards will check your temperature, confirm that you have done the self-test and direct you to the testing area. Once you have a negative test result, you will be able to go around campus while wearing a mask and maintaining social distance.
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What do I do if I start to feel ill/bad?
If it is an emergency, please call 911 and go to the hospital.
Otherwise, call or email the clinic. Do not just stop by, we do not take walk-ins. Email is checked in the evenings and on weekends and will be responded to within 12-24 hours. A decision will be made as to whether you should come to the clinic for evaluation or go to the isolation area to be tested prior to being seen.
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What if I test positive for COVID?
If we conduct a confirmatory test for COVID that is positive, we will arrange for you to get a PCR test by the Health Ministry. You will need to remain in self-quarantine until the results are back. If you are positive, we have special housing arranged for you to quarantine in and will assist with getting supplies etc. Once you are without symptoms and completed your quarantine-currently the Health Ministry requires a repeat neg PCR prior to returning to your apartment/campus.
We will get in touch with anyone you have had contact with in the 48 hours preceding the test and will follow the below CDC protocol:
COVID-19 Specific PracticesÂ
- Contact tracing will be conducted for close contacts (any individual within 6 feet of an infected person for a total of 15 minutes or more) of laboratory-confirmed or probable COVID-19 patients.
- Remote communications for the purposes of case investigation and contact tracing should be prioritized; in-person communication may be considered only after remote options have been exhausted.
- Testing is recommended for all close contacts of confirmed or probable COVID-19 patients.
- Those contacts who test positive (symptomatic or asymptomatic) should be managed as a confirmed COVID-19 case.
- Asymptomatic contacts testing negative should self-quarantine for 14 days from their last exposure (i.e., close encounter with confirmed or probable COVID-19 case)
- Asymptomatic close contacts who are not tested should self-quarantine and be monitored for 14 days after their last exposure, with linkage to clinical care for those who develop symptoms
As you know, most people have minimal symptoms. We have all recommended OTC meds for symptoms associated with Covid and we will be in daily contact with you to see how you are feeling. Should you develop symptoms requiring more aggressive treatment, Mount St John has over 40 ventilators, IV steroids and the physicians there have successfully treated many Covid patients. We can also arrange to have you air-evacuated to the US, however that is contingent on there being a hospital in the US with open ICU beds that can accept new patients.
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What are the standard procedures for entry on campus?
1) Employees, students, and visitors must always wear their AUA ID Badge on their outermost garment.
2) To access the campus employees, students, and visitors must pass through a daily screening station.
3) The screening stations will consist of:- Ensuring COVID-19 self-check questionnaire is completed.
- Assisting in temperature checks.
- Ensuring PPE guidelines are followed (wearing of mask).
- Bringing awareness to physical distancing guidelines.
- Bringing awareness to hand hygiene guidelines.
- Guiding employees, students, and visitors to various areas of the campus.
4) Persons who do not complete and follow the screening guidelines will not be allowed to enter campus.
5) Only persons who meet the screening guidelines will be allowed to enter campus.
6) While the island has a curfew in place of 8pm-5am, the campus will be open from 6 am until 6 pm.
7) While the curfew is in place, only AUA faculty, staff and students will be allowed on campus. We ask that you do not bring friends or family onto campus. The only exception is if the family member/friend has an appointment in the clinic.
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What are the standard protocols for social distancing & hygiene on campus?
1) Upon entry to the property, main building, classrooms, homerooms, Labs etc. all are asked to adhere to wearing of mask, physical distancing, and proper hygiene protocols.
2) All personnel on the AUA compound must remain six feet apart, whenever possible, and abstain from physical contact, including shaking hands. Where possible, workstations should be separated by at least six feet.
3) All personnel on the AUA compound must observe good hygiene and wash hands frequently and cough or sneeze into their own elbows.
4) The AUA community are encouraged to wash your hands frequently, soap and water are available at all restrooms. Hand sanitizer is available at high traffic locations.
5) Anyone on the AUA compound (including buildings, grounds, shared laboratory areas, conference rooms, elevators, shuttles, etc.) must wear a face covering or mask that always covers both the nose and mouth. We need to be diligent about wearing masks properly.
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- Â If you see someone not following these protocols-talk to them. It is YOUR health that is being risked. Please report improper mask use. For staff, contact HR, for students contact Dr Sanii and for faculty please contact Dr Yergan. Inability to access campus and/or referral to professionalism committee may result from continued violations.
6) Residents of campus housing are not required to wear a face covering while in their own units, but face coverings should be worn in all common areas of AUA housing buildings.
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What are the standard procedures for masks on campus?
Masks will be strictly required on campus. It must be a surgical mask or a cloth mask with 3 layers. Please add an additional filter layer if it is a cloth mask. For more information on best practices for masks, please visit here.
Campus Life
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Will campus remain open?
Campus will remain open
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Will social distancing be enforced on campus?
Social distancing will be enforced and highly encouraged on the campus to ensure the safety of our students.
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What precautions should all students take?
We are encouraging all faculty, staff and students to adhere to CDC/WHO/PAHO and local public health precautions. This includes routine handwashing—no less than 20 seconds— physical and social distancing, and facemasks in public places, particularly when distancing is limited.
For more information about COVID-19 precautions, please visit CDC/WHO’s official page.
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Will single-unit housing be available?
Yes, students can choose from a wide variety of options, including single-unit housing. However, AUA has a number of different housing options and not all are single occupancy.
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Are there any delays in package shipments to or from Antigua?
No, there have not been any delays in shipping.