Business as Unusual
To our dismay, the physical presence of being in Studio V ended prematurely. Ahead of leaving for home for spring break I was optimistic that we would be back in the C.DCC within a matter of 2 weeks. Its been over a month since I’ve been back and I only packed one pair of shorts. Needless to say, I do a lot of laundry.
It has been an adjustment, but as many of my peers have written in previous posts, we have acclimated well. Though it is disappointing that the builds planned for the Greenway are postponed, the alternate challenges that we’ve been busy at work on are just as rewarding; not only for us, but for the community as well.
Business is Zoom-ing
As Courtney stated in her post yesterday, we’ve held a lot of meetings over Zoom recently, especially Pastre. He spent Wednesday from 9am – 6pm meeting with all parties currently involved and parties eager to get involved in our developing project. Support seems to grow everyday as more members of medical and academic communities want to assist us in our efforts to document and compile safe COVID-19 testing facility practices. With the help of emergency health professionals at the sample collection facility currently operational in Charleston, we have compiled a thorough documentation of their successful practice and are currently bringing the research further.
Our hope is to have a 2.0 document that includes validated options for testing facility locations and operation logistics. Within my group, we are tasked with generalizing the current drive-thru testing procedure and looking at possible adaptive re-use options. The end goal is that this aids in assisting other emergency medical entities in setting up efficient and safe testing facilities that can be accessible to everyone.
A project like this exemplifies the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration and how architectural graphics and design work can play a positive role in the community. For me personally, being a part of this project has given me a meaningful purpose amidst circumstances where it is, at times, hard to stay motivated. It is some pretty exciting stuff.
– Best wishes, and stay safe.