San Luis Obispo Public Health expects to receive laboratory results this weekend after testing a person with mild novel coronavirus COVID-19 symptoms, according to a Thursday afternoon news release.
The tested resident was recently in contact with travelers from an area with widespread coronavirus.
“The patient has now fully recovered and none of the patient’s contacts have symptoms. The patient has fully cooperated with home isolation and daily monitoring from Public Health staff,” the news release read.
The sample was sent to the California Department of Public Health Laboratory for testing.
“In keeping with due diligence and our testing protocols, we have decided to proceed with testing this specimen although our suspicion of illness remains low,” Borenstein wrote.
Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Health & Wellbeing Tina Hadaway-Mellis said it is “safe to assume” novel coronavirus COVID-19 is in San Luis Obispo County at the Academic Senate Meeting March 3.
“Given our global society, it’s probably safe to assume that it might already be in the county somewhere,” Hadaway-Mellis said.
The risk to the general public in San Luis Obispo remains low at the moment, according to Borenstein.
There have been 36 reported cases of novel coronavirus COVID-19 in California, according to the CDC.
On campus, Cal Poly has activated the Emergency Operations Center to manage the coronavirus threat, University Communications Specialist Cynthia Lambert wrote in an email to Mustang News.
“We are proactively engaged in pandemic planning with our public health partners, including the County of San Luis Obispo Public Health Department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,” Lambert wrote.
Lambert said administration is asking the campus community to continue to take everyday precautions to prevent the spread of respiratory viruses, like coronavirus and the flu, by washing their hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.
Cal Poly has suspended study abroad programs in South Korea and Italy due to the virus. In addition, travelers to China, South Korea, Japan, Italy and Iran are being asked to delay their return to campus for 14 days after returning, according to a campus-wide email.
Coronavirus symptoms are similar to flu, including fever, coughing and shortness of breath, according to the CDC.