June 15, 2021
Dear Members of the Research Community:
I am so pleased to share this note with you to confirm that things are moving in the right direction.
With the increase in vaccinations and decrease in case counts, and with guidance from infectious disease experts, we feel the time is right to increase our research activity.
Effective today – June 15, 2021 – we will transition to an amended Phase 2 for both on-campus and fieldwork research activity. New directives for both can be found here.
If your research plan previously had permission withdrawn, it will now be sent to your ADR for reapproval under the most recent guidelines. Please note, this process may take a few days.
While I am cautiously optimistic that we will only move forward from here, I am mindful that the situation is still dynamic. With that in mind, it is important that you are prepared to pause your research on short notice.
Please remember, if you are coming to campus or a McMaster facility, it is essential that you adhere to the University’s COVID health and safety measures and ensure all health and safety protocols are in place before you or any member of your research team returns to campus. Please exercise proper hand hygiene, physical distancing and mask-wearing protocols. And, if your research takes place at a hospital site or McMaster Innovation Park, you must also adhere to site-specific protocols.
This has been a long time coming and I appreciate everyone’s patience in the name of protecting our community. I know I’m not alone in saying that I look forward to the day that we have no more phases – amended or otherwise – and that you’re all back in your labs or in the field doing what you do best.
Stay safe,
Karen Mossman
Vice-President, Research