An Assessment of COVID-19 Pandemic Quarantine and Isolation Programmes: A Case Study of the University of Limpopo

Abstract

South Africa, like the rest of the world, was affected by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. From March 2020, the country’s president, Cyril  Ramaphosa, imposed lockdown regulations in an attempt to curb the spread of the coronavirus, which led to the closure of universities. When the  national regulations allowed for the resumption of university activities, the University of Limpopo had to set up quarantine and isolation facilities as a  strategy to manage infections. As a new initiative, challenges would be expected in managing this unfolding situation. Against this background, this  paper considers the findings of a study which focused on the establishment and operations of quarantine and isolation facilities at the university.  Documents were analysed for the purpose of data construction and substantiated with data collected through semi-structured interviews. The university  staff members responsible for the facilities were purposively selected to participate in this study. Data were analysed through thematic content analysis.  The study found that the university established the quarantine and isolation facilities according to government guidelines; the facilities were well  managed; and activities were implemented as expected. However, operational challenges that require improvements were identified and this article  accordingly makes recommendations.