Healthcare Provider Guidance and Resources
- Guidance for Discontinuation of Isolation and Transmission-Based Precautions in Patients with COVID-19
- Discharge Guidance for Suspected or Confirmed COVID-19 Patients
- CDC Guidance for Healthcare Personnel with Potential COVID-19 Exposure
- Handout: What to Do After You Have Been Tested for COVID-19
- Handout: Home Isolation for Individuals with COVID-19
- Handout: Instructions for Individuals with COVID-19 Exposure (Self-Quarantine)
- CDC guidance related to COVID-19
Patient Handouts
- What to Do After You Have Been Tested for COVID-19
- Home Isolation for Individuals with COVID-19
- Instructions for Individuals with COVID-19 Exposure (Self-Quarantine)
Vaccination Providers
Other Clinical
- Referral Information for Monoclonal Antibody Treatment (mAb): COVID-19 Centers of Excellence
- Workflow: Clinician Guide for Outpatient Management of COVID-19 in the Outpatient Setting
- Decision Diagram for Clinical Coding of COVID-19
Reporting COVID-19 Cases
- Electronic Reporting of COVID-19 Test Results to MSDH
Options and data formats - Request NBS Account for Reporting
COVID-19 Deaths
- Death Reporting Q & A for Medical Examiners, Coroners and Physicians
- CDC Guidance on Certifying COVID-19 Deaths PDF
- MSDH Guidance for Funeral Homes and Mortuaries PDF
- How to get a Mississippi death certificate PDF
Health Facilities
Specimen Collection, Delivery and Reporting
- COVID-19 Specimen Collection
- COVID-19 Lab Requisition Form
- COVID-19 Refrigerated Specimen Packaging
- COVID-19 Frozen Specimen Packaging
- COVID-19 Specimen Transport and Delivery
Specimen Reporting
SARS-CoV-2 Virus Strain Surveillance
- COVID-19 Enhanced Surveillance Submission Recommendations
- SARS-CoV-2 Enhanced Surveillance Submission Requisition Form 1198
Map and Directions for Laboratory Dropoff
The Dr. F.E.”ED” Thompson, Jr. Public Health Laboratory Facility is on the State Department of Health's central office campus in Jackson, MS at 350 East Woodrow Wilson Drive, Jackson, 39216.
Local Delivery of Samples: Drop samples off at the rear of the Thompson lab building. Detailed instructions are in our sample shipping guidance.
Dropoff hours: Monday through Friday from 8:00–4:30.
Mississippi Health Alert Network
CDC Guidance
Healthcare and EMS
- Home Care Guidance
- Discontinuation of Home Isolation for Persons with COVID-19
- Healthcare Infection Control Guidance
- Clinical Care Guidance
- Healthcare Personnel with Potential COVID-19 Exposure Guidance
- Inpatient Obstetric Healthcare Guidance
- Guidance for EMS
Persons Under Investigation (PUI)
- Evaluating PUIs and Asymptomatic Close Contacts of Confirmed Cases
- Collection and Submission of Postmortem Specimens from Deceased PUI
- Evaluating and Reporting Persons Under Investigation (PUI)
Other Guidances
- Strategies for optimizing the supply of N95 respirators
- Guidance for extended use of N95 respirators in healthcare settings
More from the CDC
Recommendations for Universal Mask Use for Healthcare Professionals
The Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) continues to recommend that healthcare workers wear masks throughout the workday. N95 or KN95 masks should not be used routinely but preserved for those caring directly for patients with COVID-19 or those suspected of having COVID-19. This recommendation applies to healthcare professionals working in patient care areas, even when they are not in a patient-facing role.
Healthcare professionals included in this recommendation are all paid and unpaid persons serving in healthcare settings with the potential for either direct or indirect exposure to patients or infectious materials, contaminated medical supplies or contaminated environmental surfaces.
Please realize masks should be used in addition to (not instead of) continuing proper distancing and proper hand hygiene.
Proper hand hygiene should be performed after donning and doffing the mask. Masks should be replaced when they become soiled, moist or damaged. Masks can be replaced at various time points as directed by your healthcare institution, following hygienic principles. If surgical masks are not readily available due to restrictions in supply, masks of similar quality produced by local industry or homemade cloth masks can be used as directed by your institution. Cloth masks should be laundered at home daily in hot water and dried with high heat. See CDC guidelines for cloth masks ».
When caring for patients with possible COVID-19 symptoms, MSDH still recommends a minimum complement of a surgical mask, eye protection and gloves. When caring for patients with known COVID-19 we strongly recommend strict compliance with CDC infection control guidance »
