A Proactive Testing Strategy to COVID-19 for Reopening University Campus during Omicron Wave in Korea: Ewha Safe...

Ewha Womans University launched an on-campus Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) response system called Ewha Safety Campus (ESC) Project in collaboration with the Seegene Inc. RT-PCR diagnostic tests for COVID-19 were proactively provided to the participants. This study examines the effectiveness of the on-campus testing strategy in controlling the reproduction number (R _t) and identifying student groups vulnerable to infection.

The ESC project was launched on March 2, 2022, with a pilot period from Feb 22 to March 1, 2022-the peak of the Omicron variant wave. We collected daily data on the RT-PCR test results of the students of Ewha Womans University from Mar 2 to Apr 30, 2022. We daily calculated R _t and compared it with that of the general population of Korea (women, people aged 20-29 years, and Seoul residents). We also examined the students vulnerable to the infection based on the group-specific R _t and positivity rate.

A lower R _t was observed about 2 weeks after the implementation of the ESC Project than that of the general population. The lower R _t persisted during the entire study period. Dormitory residents had a higher R _t. The positivity rate was higher in students who did not comply with quarantine guidelines and did not receive the second dose of the vaccine.

The study provides scientific evidence for the effectiveness of the on-campus testing strategy and different infection vulnerabilities of students, depending on dormitory residence, compliance with the quarantine guidelines, and vaccination.