Moving to the Green Phase: Week of June 22, 2020

Students, Faculty, Residents, Staff, Alumni, Board Members and Friends, 

On Friday, Governor Wolf announced that Montgomery County will move from the “Yellow Phase” to the “Green Phase” of the Process to Reopen Pennsylvania on Friday, June 26^th. Philadelphia County will follow in about a week. You can see the difference between the phases here.   

It’s important to remember that the “Green Phase” of the Process to Reopen Pennsylvania does not mean that things go back to normal – they do not. While most businesses will open in some way, shape or form, we still need to remember that the COVID-19 pandemic is still very much a part of our lives. COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are on the increase in several states across the country. Luckily, because our county and state public health experts have done a good job in helping to contain the virus here, our numbers are still decreasing. Clearly, we don’t want to do anything to jeopardize that. That’s why it remains imperative to practice social and physical distancing, frequent hand washing and wearing a face mask when around others.

At Salus, we are maintaining our approach of putting the health and safety of our students, faculty and staff first and foremost in everything we do. As you will recall, we received relief from several restrictions while in the Yellow Phase because we educate healthcare professionals. Consequently, we won’t see any changes in our operation this summer, to include no academic or social gatherings. We will continue with our current screening, social/physical distance and cleaning protocols and continue to encourage people who can work from home to do so. You will see more changes as we begin our Fall semester in August. Applying those same principles, our labs and classrooms have been reconfigured to accommodate appropriate physical distancing guidelines and we are working hard to have our LRC and Hafter Center, to include the fitness center, ready for the Fall semester. Please reference our COVID-19 webpage for more details.  

It is our intention for everyone coming to our campus and clinics to not only remain healthy and safe but also to feel comfortable in doing so. As I’ve noted many times since this pandemic began, we will get through this just fine. We already have become smarter and more adaptable. I’m certain that there are many things that still don’t feel quite comfortable to many of you. I know wearing a mask while going to the grocery store or riding my bike around others still doesn’t feel natural to me, but I also know I’m protecting others, so as the folks at Nike suggest, “I just do it”. When on campus, please respect others and wear your face mask. Please continue to social and physical distance – both on and off campus. Wash your hands frequently and wear your mask, covering your nose and mouth. I look forward to seeing more of you on campus in the upcoming weeks. 

We are Salus Strong and that, along with acting professionally and courteously towards others, will get us through this.

Mike