29 May 2020

On 11 May, the first step of restarting the research activities was taken. This was preceded by a great deal of effort on the part of the researchers involved, who submitted a protocol for each department on how they would like to restart in a controlled way and by an inspection visit of the AMD to ensure safety.
Nicolai Giling, chair of the RCT: We are impressed by the professional way the groups have acted. We are happy to see that the research, even during this strange Covid-times, can be started up more and more.
 
We are pleased to be able to say that this restart of step 1 worked out extremely well. The weekly evaluation and close monitoring show that the goals of a safe and controlled restart have been successful. The restart so far has had no negative influence on the infection incidence in our working environment. The traffic increase to and from the campus and in particular the hospital buildings is showing a controlled growth.
 
That is why the RCT, instead of the weekly evaluation, will from now on only check with the supervisor weekly about any incidents that have occurred. The current structure of supervisors will remain in place, but they no longer need to be present on location all the time. The RCT will continue to monitor the volume growth and possible health issues and stays available for questions and support. We wish the researchers of step 1 a lot of pleasure and success in continuing their research.
 
Meanwhile, the preparations for step 2 are also well advanced. After the final decision of the RCT, these researchers can now restart from this step as of Monday 1 June. The RCT is already in preparation for the restart of research internships and the research of phase three, for which we will have the preventive measures ready in the coming weeks. When we have clarity about the possible start date of this phase, we will communicate this to the departments.

Questions? Ask them via research@radboudumc.nl