[Exports_project_office] Comments on anonymous form - please read

[Craig M. Lee]

Hi Ivona,

Thanks for this - interesting range of responses.

Good questions about response should someone fall ill during isolation, prior to boarding the ship. We should talk with Ella and Guy to gain a clear understanding of what happens, and who’s responsible. At least it's the UK, so health care will be good and there should not be a big communication barrier. When we’ve had people ill or injured during overseas ops in the past, we’ve usually left someone healthy from the science team behind, to assist and serve as their advocate. Really important when leaving someone in less-than-ideal conditions, but maybe important even under better circumstances. Would we need/want to do that here?

Regarding comment #4, nothing we can do, short of full-time monitoring of each person, is going to mitigate this. We’re relying on people to behave. I’m not sure what ‘investments’ NASA could sensibly make.

The ’shortening quarantine’ thing should never have been mentioned. We’re following a protocol that guides seagoing research efforts for the US fleet, which is based on a suite of professional recommendations. Unless new information arises that shifts these guidelines, I don’t think we’re going to want to change our timing. Does not matter if there’s a legal loophole that would allow us to do less - our decisions should be based on safety, not minimization of quarantine time.

Concur with Ken on the last comment. There are many challenges, and a real degree of personal risk, associated with undertaking field work, and especially field work that requires long-haul travel, at this time. Everyone’s circumstances are different. I’m not sure what we can do beyond being supportive and reassuring as people ponder decisions about whether to participate. Would it be more fair if we cancelled the cruises? I think another group would speak out about such a decision. It’s not so much that the situation is unfair, but rather very difficult and unfortunate. As Ken says, we need to do our best to make people feel safe and supported enough to say ’no’.

Thanks,

Craig


--
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Craig M. Lee
University of Washington
Applied Physics Laboratory
1013 NE 40th St.
Seattle, WA 98105-6698
craiglee at uw.edu
(206) 685-7656
(206) 543-6785 (fax)
http://iop.apl.washington.edu
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> On Feb 24, 2021, at 5:00 AM, Ivona Cetinic via Exports_project_office <exports_project_office at espo.nasa.gov> wrote:
> 
> Hello, 
> 
> updates on the comments. I answered some easy ones in the general email to the _all list. Hower many remain. I got total of 13 comments so far:
> 
> 1) several of the comments express their positive view of everything that we are doing and looking forward to the cruise (3)
> 
> 2) A couple of questions have more to do with the quarantine itself such as: "  Hello, I was wondering if a relative can come quarantine with me in the hotel. Also, which rooms are we expecting if we are students (I saw different dimensions in the hotel's web)? "  
> I will deal with those questions via email/ and 5 minutes at the beginning of the Process cruise meeting on thursday. 
> 
> 3) Several of the comments express their concern of the potential false positives, and ask clarifications on how it will be dealt with - also they inquire clarification on what will happen if one gets sick:
> e.g. " What happens if someone test positive right before the mob? Will that person get looked after financially and logistically?"
> e.g. " It remains unclear to me what the procedure will be for someone who tests positive and becomes symptomatic. Will they be provided an oximeter, thermometer, palliative medications? Or will they need to secure those themselves? The names of medications are completely different in the UK and we might need some translation/guidance on sources. Will someone check on them on a regular basis to make sure they're ok or does that need to be arranged within lab groups? What are the details of the health coverage and/or potential costs to the participant? Are there local contact people that folks can reach out to for help/questions? 
> Sorry for so many questions, but this is something I'm really concerned about. It seems if we are going to move forward with this, it's a real risk. Thank you!"
> I would appreciate some time to discuss these on PO meeting. 
> 
> 4) And then there are worrisome ones:
> "After my concerns for the health of all participants and about the general trajectory of the pandemic, my biggest worry is that a participant who is not as invested in the success of the field campaign (or who is simply more invested in other projects/aspects of their life -- which should also be OK) will take a risk that jeopardizes the whole thing.  I think NASA should commit resources to help mitigate this type of risk, as much as possible."
> 
> "Dave mentioned that we might shorten our quarantine to 10 days and we would be able to do this because we would be designated as "sea farers." I know it is incredibly expensive to keep that many people in a hotel for that long and every day probably helps with finances. But from a COVID safety standpoint, why would we try to "get around" the current law in the UK (requiring a 14 day quarantine from anyone entering the country) and/or flaunt the CDC and probably all of our institutions' best practices? If there is even the slightest chance of someone developing COVID in those last 4 days, despite testing, why wouldn't we just do a 14 day quarantine and follow the rules? "
> 
> and the most depressing one: 
> "There are way too many uncertainties out of our hands. (1) The experiment starts and ends in UK, the epicenter of new COVID variants; (2) Most of people will travel between two biggest airports in the world, New York and London, with arguably greatest exposure to the viruses; (3) Travel bans imposed by the governments, including the US government and the other countries that flights may transit; (4) It is almost impossible to have emergency personnel backup in case COVID-19 positive happens; (5) visa issues for non-US citizens.
> 
> The science is great, and in a sense very enticing. While we can always say it is a personal decision, there are unintended pressures forcing people to choose between science and personal safety/health. This is unfair and to a certain extent cruel.  "
> 
> Thank you for taking time to readthese. #3 and #4 are most concerning. I would love a discussion (specifically on #3) how to move forward. 
> 
> Ivona
> 
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