Surveillance Testing

Surveillance testing involves testing people from across campus to identify asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic individuals and help prevent potential outbreaks before they occur. Individuals are randomly selected from across campus to participate in the surveillance testing.

Learn more about the surveillance testing process by viewing the introduction video below.

The University's surveillance testing is part of a comprehensive strategy to limit the spread of COVID-19 on campus. Surveillance testing is one additional way we can help keep each other safe and provide a healthy learning and working environment, and it is strongly encouraged by state and national health officials. Each of us must be diligent in our efforts to control, mitigate, and prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus and preserve the health and safety of our campus and in our surrounding communities.

Yes.  All students, faculty and staff (with only a few exceptions identified below) who spend any time on the Dallas, PA campus this semester must be tested when selected. Just like wearing a mask, washing your hands, monitoring for symptoms daily using the symptom tracker, and watching your physical distance between people, surveillance testing is one additional way we can help keep each other safe and provide a healthy learning and working environment for everyone.

Testing will be done each week on Mondays and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Henry Student Lounge.  Each Thursday, a new random pool will be selected. Those selected must sign up for testing appointment on the Health and Wellness page in the portal for an appointment the following Monday or Tuesday.  If you are unable to sign up for an appointment, contact cougarcaretesting@misericordia.edu.

Misericordia University will be conducting free COVID-19 surveillance testing of students and employees on the Dallas, PA campus beginning the week of February 8 and continue each week throughout the spring semester. Each week, a random sample of roughly 25 percent of the MU on-campus community will be selected for testing.  This test is a saliva-based PCR test.  Samples will be analyzed in the COVID testing laboratory on campus.

All students and employees who are living, learning, or working on campus this semester or accessing any campus building may be selected for random testing each week.

Your saliva sample is being tested only for the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Saliva samples are stored only in the laboratory until it has been concluded that your sample was either presumed positive or negative for the SARS-CoV-2 virus.  After the test concludes, all saliva samples are destroyed.

Pooled testing is a way to more efficiently and cost-effectively test a large number of people.  Five individual samples are combined to create one “pool.” If a pooled test result is negative, then all specimens can be presumed negative for Misericordia University purposes. If the test result is positive or indeterminate, then all the specimens in that particular test pool will be retested individually in order to identify the presumed positive person(s).

Negative test results will appear in Medicat -- often within 48 hours.  You will get an email notification when your test results are posted.  If your test is presumptive positive, you will be contacted directly by the Cougar Care Team as quickly as possible. 

• Students: If your surveillance test indicates presumptive positive, stay in your room or at home.  You will be contacted by Cougar Care for further instructions.   Avoid other people, wear your mask, and begin your isolation immediately to limit the spread of COVID.
• Staff and faculty: If your surveillance test indicates presumptive positive, contact your supervisor and go home.  As soon as possible, contact your primary care provider for further direction. Begin your isolation immediately to limit the spread of COVID.  Avoid contact with others. Wear a mask. Do not come to campus. Contact Cougar Care for additional guidance.
• If your test is surveillance negative, this means that at the time your saliva was collected, the presence of the COVID-19 virus was not detected in your saliva by our surveillance methods.  Negative results can indicate no virus is present or that the amount of virus present is lower than we can detect. Therefore, the negative test result does not guarantee the complete absence of the virus. Please keep in mind that you can still contract the virus at any time.  It is essential you continue to wear your mask, monitor for symptoms daily using the symptom tracker, wash your hands, and watch your physical distance between people.

For any pool that indicates the presence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the five samples that comprised that pool will be retested individually. If you provided an adequate quantity of saliva in your original sample, you will not be contacted or need to come in for your sample to be tested again.  Only people whose individual tests indicated presumed positive will be contacted by Cougar Care.  

Yes, you must test each time you are randomly selected.  Because the selection is random, you may be tested multiple times in a row or you may go several weeks without being called for testing.  It is random.

No. You must participate in the random testing on campus even if you are tested elsewhere.

If you were not able to make or keep your appointment for surveillance testing on the week when you were selected, you may have a limited opportunity to reschedule the test.  Failing to reschedule or participate in testing will result in additional action.

Students who do not test will be referred to Student Conduct for action.

Employees who do not participate in surveillance testing will face disciplinary actions as described in the document distributed from HR to the campus on 2/12/21.  

Vaccinated people still need to be tested for the similar reasons that vaccinated people are still required to wear masks--as a continued precaution.  While a vaccinated person may now have, as a result of the vaccine, the antibodies to ward off infection, it is unclear whether they may nevertheless be a carrier of the virus and pass it on to others, unknowingly, because their antibodies would prevent them from being symptomatic. Testing will help identify that possibility.  We also want to be proactive with any newly discovered variants of the virus for which the vaccine may not effectively respond.

No.  Having the vaccine with not interfere with this COVID test.  The vaccine causes your body to create antibodies to fight the virus.  The PCR COVID test does not test for the presence of antibody, but instead it detects the molecular structure of the virus itself. 

Rarely are people exempt from participating in surveillance testing. You may be exempt from surveillance testing if:

• You are working or learning completely online and have no plans to visit the Dallas, PA campus for the duration of the semester.
• You are an athlete in season and already being regularly tested.
• You are enrolled only in a Weekend program
• You have received a positive COVID test result in the previous 90 days.
• You are in isolation.
• You are in quarantine.
• You are a student or employee on our Pittsburgh, PA Campus

If you believe you qualify for an exemption because you will not spend any time on campus this semester, please contact cougarcaretesting@misericordia.edu

If you have questions regarding MU’s surveillance testing or your appointment for testing, please contact cougarcaretesting@misericordia.edu