Local agencies, schools, universities monitoring spread of coronavirus

PITTSBURGH — As the novel coronavirus continues spreading across China and more cases are confirmed in the United States, local agencies, schools, facilities and universities are keeping a close eye.

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University of Pittsburgh

Officials with the University of Pittsburgh said they are monitoring the outbreak of the illness. All faculty and staff going to the Employee Health Services clinic and all students vising the Student Health Services clinic are being screened to find out if they recently traveled overseas. University health officials said they are also reviewing the health and travel history of people who have traveled to China or other areas that are being impacted by the virus.

Pitt health officials urge anyone who has traveled to China in the past 30 days and has a fever, cough and/or shortness of breath to call their doctor right away.

Carnegie Mellon University

In a campuswide email issued last week, health officials with Carnegie Mellon University said out of an abundance of caution, any student with a fever and a cough who has been to Wuhan, China, within the last two weeks needs to report to University Health Services immediately. For faculty and staff, officials urge contacting your doctor.

University health officials said they are working closely with the Allegheny County Health Department. They also stress the campus community continue handwashing, staying at home if feeling ill, and covering coughs and sneezes.

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Pittsburgh International Airport

Bob Kerlik, a spokesperson for the Pittsburgh International Airport, said the facility is staying on top of the latest developments with the virus. He said they do have a disease plan for the airport, should they need it.

"Safety and security are the top priorities at Pittsburgh International Airport. We are in contact with Customs and Border Protection, the Allegheny County Health Department, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Pittsburgh has no nonstop flights from China and as such is not one of the U.S. airports identified for enhanced passenger health screenings. This is an evolving situation and the airport is prepared to respond if circumstances change.”

UPMC Health System

UPMC officials told Channel 11 they are keeping in touch with the Centers for Disease Control for the latest guidance on the spread of the coronavirus.

A spokesperson sent the following statement:

“As with all emerging infectious diseases that cause global health concerns, UPMC is staying informed of developments with the coronavirus and taking proper precautions to enable us to quickly and safely triage anyone with the disease, should they arrive at any of our facilities. These efforts include briefings with our local, state and federal public health authorities; travel screening alerts at our clinical facilities to help staff identify patients potentially at risk for having contracted the disease, such as those with recent travel from China; instructions for proper infection prevention procedures; and drills with public health and emergency officials on proper protocol for transporting, quarantining and caring for patients with concerning infections.”

“Our community can be reassured that UPMC facilities and staff are well-equipped to properly care for patients with contagious diseases without exposing other patients, staff or visitors.”

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Allegheny County Health Department

Allegheny County has no current cases of the coronavirus, according to officials with the Allegheny County Health Department. Agency officials said they are saying in contact with federal and state health departments as well as various other local facilities to continue monitoring and keeping ahead of the spread of the virus. Health department officials said the transmission of the virus person-to-person is still being looked at across the globe.

Fourth and fifth cases of coronavirus confirmed in U.S. Fourth and fifth cases of coronavirus confirmed in U.S.

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