Dear Colleagues,
I am happy to announce that we now have guidelines and tools for fieldwork posted here. Many thanks to Stephanie Harrington, Suzanne Hawley, Greg Miller, and Mari Ostendorf for putting this information together, and to many at EH&S for providing important input.
Please note that these are guidelines, not firm policy, as we expect some unique situations must be considered. These tools are designed to help PIs and their research teams to think through various possibilities and be prepared. Ultimately the Dept Chair or equivalent needs to make the final decision regarding requirements for each Field Work Plan, as some field work will be unique. We are happy to help, as is EH&S.
In general, the same types of standards that would be expected on campus apply in the field. This includes: involvement of the minimum number of participants required to do the work safely, PPE/face coverings, social distancing, attestations, personal hygiene, daily cleaning of equipment/gear, willing participants.
These tools are very thorough by design. However, please note that many of the sections are not applicable when the field work is local and people are working from home (i.e., day trips into the field). This extensive list should be viewed as a menu; not all items will apply to all field work. Requirements become much more complicated when the fieldwork involves travel and overnight accommodations, as this means that specific protocols that meet the same on-campus standards must be developed for: travel, lodging, meal preparation and delivery, provisioning, etc. in addition to the work itself. Again, the same COVID-19 prevention measures must be brought into the field.
Specific challenges can include –
- Cloth face coverings and medical/procedural masks are not effective when wet, so other PPE may need to be acquired (e.g., face shields), depending on expected environmental conditions
- Plans must be developed for medical isolations in the field as well as emergency evacuations in the context of a pandemic
- Not all field sites are accessible – so researchers are having to do a lot more homework on whether their travel into a region will be allowed and whether their permits will be honored
- Lack of internet connectivity
- Dependable access to running water
- Establishing regular check-ins
- Need to work at less than 6 foot distance; special precautions must be taken including face shields, frequent hand-washing and disinfection protocols. May consider 2-week isolation if the field work time period is sufficiently long
- Special restrictions apply to multi-day ship-board field work. Please see this email with link to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Considerations for Making Decisions Regarding Conducting Science Onboard U.S. Academic Research Fleet Vessels from UNOLS.
Remember: if one member of the team gets sick, everyone will have to self-isolate for 2 weeks! It is common sense to take major precautions.
Also, it is important to keep an eye on conditions in a different state or county—if requirements are more stringent than King County, it will be necessary to follow requirements in place for the study site.
While some of the preparations and precautions may seem cumbersome, they will enable the safe execution of research activities in the field. Researchers might also consider items that are not necessarily COVID-related as best practice for field work even after the pandemic ends.
Please use the Office of Research as a resource:research@uw.edu
Many thanks and stay safe,
Mary Lidstrom
Fieldwork Resources and Guidance
UW Fieldwork Health and Safety Plan (COVID Return: Phases 1-2)
Returning to In-Person Research Involving Fieldwork: Decision Tree