Quarantine and Self-Isolation FAQ

Students experiencing symptoms of Covid-19 should stay home and contact a doctor. The AUP Health Office can assist students with referrals and booking appointments, including remote sessions with a general practitioner. Students who miss class should be in touch directly with their faculty and provide a doctor’s note when possible.

Your doctor may prescribe a Covid-PCR test depending on the situation. If this test is positive, a French health authorities or your doctor will be in touch to require a period of self-isolation and to identify contact cases. When possible, students who are required to self-isolate should provide a medical note to their faculty and carry on with coursework remotely if they are feeling well enough. Students who are not well will be followed by French health authorities, their doctor and the Health Office.  

• If you test positive for PCR, whether or not you have symptoms of Covid-19, you will generally recover in a few days with some rest. In the meantime, keep an eye on any symptoms to see if they improve or worsen. 
• Take your temperature twice a day 
• If you have a fever or a headache, take paracetamol: please ask advice from a GP for the dosage that may be effective for you. Avoid ibuprofen, or another anti-inflammatory medicine 
• If you are taking medication for another illness, don’t stop the treatment; if in doubt, contact your GP for advice 
• Don’t start taking any other medicines without a GP’s advice 
• If you have trouble breathing, call the SAMU (dial 15) immediately. 
• Stay in touch with the AUP Health Office for support and advice. Remember that ISOS can also provide 24/7 support.

French health authorities consider this a low-risk contact. They advise you to monitor your health for 7 days after the initial exposure and to keep a close on your temperature. There is no need to self-quarantine or to get tested. If symptoms appear, you should see a doctor and ask for a prescription to be tested.

The following are guidelines provided by French health authorities if you or someone you are living with test positive for Covid-19. Please contact the AUP Health Office and Residential Life for questions related to your specific case.

• After consulting your doctor, stay home, assuming your living situation is suitable 
• Your doctor will prescribe masks for the duration of the self-isolation 
• Provide a doctor’s note to your faculty and plan on carrying on your coursework remotely assuming you are feeling well enough to do so
• If sharing with others, stay in a separate room and keep the door closed. Don’t share a bed with anyone and don’t eat in communal spaces. 
• Avoid contact with people living under the same roof; don’t touch or kiss anyone.  
• Wear a mask in the presence of others. 
• If possible, use a different bathroom and toilet to other people you live with. If this is not possible, make sure these spaces are cleaned regularly. Make sure everyone in the house washes their hands before and after using these shared spaces. 
• Stay at least one meter away from others and limit discussions to 15 minutes. 
• Don’t spend time with higher-risk individuals: people over 65; people with chronic illnesses like high-blood pressure, diabetes or cardiovascular disease; people with high obesity; third-trimester pregnant women. 
• Wash your hands often with water and soap, and use a personal towel. 
• Use a paper tissue when you sneeze or cough, then throw it in a trash can and immediately wash your hands. 
• Don’t share everyday personal belongings: towels, soap, silverware, plates, phones, and so forth. 
• If you are self-isolating on your own, ask close friends or family members to deliver your medication, groceries or meals or have these things delivered. Ask for these deliveries to be left at the door to minimize interpersonal contact. 
• If you need medical or housekeeping help at home, the same person should always provide this help if possible. This person must wash their hands often and wear a mask. 
• Provide regular updates to your relatives, close friends and the AUP Health Office
• If you have to go to the doctor, the pharmacy, or the laboratory, wash your hands before leaving, wear a mask, stay away from others the whole time you are outside, and don’t stay out for long; check with your medical providers ahead of time to see if a remote session is possible

Yes. Clean your apartment regularly keeping the following in mind:

• Ventilate the room you are staying in for ten minutes several times a day by opening windows. 
• Clean and disinfect all surfaces – doorknobs, bathroom furniture, toilets, carpets and so forth – with my usual cleaning products, before then applying a product containing 70% alcohol or bleach and rinsing. 
• Clean your dishes separately, with your own dish-soap, and dry them with our own dishtowel or you can use the dishwasher at 60°. 
• Wash your laundry (linens, towels) at 60° for 30 minutes or more. 
• Use kitchen tools like a sponge or a mop to avoid spreading dust. Don’t use the vacuum cleaner. 
• After cleaning, wash your hands with soap and dry them. 
• Get rid of any garbage that could be contaminated (or follow garbage disposal instructions if you have relocated) 
• Use a plastic garbage bag (opaque, 30 liters max, closed garbage bag with ties) 
• Keep this bag in your room 
• Reserve this bag for the disposal of masks, paper tissues,    wipes, and all other disinfecting waste 
• When the bag is full, put it in a second bag 
• Don’t touch the bag for 24 hours 
• Throw this bag in the building’s non-recyclable trash container 

Click here for more sanitary tips for your apartment.