Updates on Blue Pass (OVPAIS Memo)

MEMO TO:    The University Community

FROM:            Rodolfo P. Ang, Vice President for Administration & Information Systems

DATE:             17 February 2022

RE:                  Updates on Blue Pass

Ateneo’s Blue Pass system for campus access, health monitoring, and contact tracing was launched on a pilot basis on 14 February 2022.  Many members of our community experienced technical glitches in trying to use the application, and our team would like to apologize for any inconvenience that may have resulted.   Thank you for your patience in working through the different bumps that we experienced as a community in this pilot phase.  We especially thank everyone who called our attention to problem areas that we may not otherwise have noticed or sent us suggestions on how to further improve Blue Pass.  Please keep your feedback and comments coming.  They remind our team that we can (and need to) do better.

Please allow us to issue the following clarifications and supplementary guidelines for the use of Blue Pass culled from the experience of the last few days.

1. On Not Being Able to Log Into the System
   1. The four most common reasons why people have not been able to log into the system are:
      1. Your name has not been submitted to us by the head of your office (especially for new hires and part-time faculty).  We are unable to authorize registration for Blue Pass unless we receive notification from the head of your office to allow you to do so.
      2. Information provided to us by your office head was wrong (e.g. a misspelled email address)
      3. You are trying to log in using an email account different from the one that was submitted to us by your office (e.g. using a personal email account instead of the official Ateneo email account)
      4. You are using an email browser that cannot support Blue Pass.  To avoid any technical difficulties, please update your email browsers to any of the following:
         1. Google Chrome (v94.0 and up)
         2. Microsoft Edge (v94.0 and up)
         3. Firefox (v91.0 and up)    
         4. Safari  (Safari 12 and up)   
   2. Please contact your supervisor to verify the information that was submitted to us on your behalf (name, email address, unit).  We have also revised the generic error message that the system sends out so that it can provide more specific information on why you have been refused access to Blue Pass.  We hope that this will better help you to determine what rectification measures you need to undertake.
2. On Being Asked to Provide Additional Personal Health Information
   1. Everyone is required to fill up the Health Declaration Form on a daily basis, as a requirement for campus access. This is a requirement for all establishments including our University, as per DOLE-DTI Joint Memorandum Circular No.20-04-A and CHED-DOH Joint Memorandum No. 2021-004. As such, the Blue Pass system requires proof of vaccination or a recent negative Rt-PCR test result to gain campus access.  However, only LS students are required to fill up the other health information, as part of the LS’ student health monitoring program.
   2. The Blue Pass algorithm has been updated so that non-LS students wishing to use Blue Pass will be required to submit only their personal information, their vaccination status, and information regarding their health insurance.   The submission of any other health information is now purely optional on the part of the user and is not a requirement for participation in Blue Pass.  That said,  our university physician strongly recommends that we all fill in this medical information so that his team can do proper screening and more efficiently provide appropriate medical advice in the event that you encounter any form of health episode. 
3. On Difficulties in Getting your personal QR Code for the day
   1. Many members of our community play multiple roles within the university and will find that their names have been submitted by multiple units.   For instance, an employee can also at the same time be a graduate student.   If you use your status as a student to enroll in Blue Pass but are not currently enrolled in a class that is tagged for F2F sessions, you will not be able to generate a personal QR code to enter campus, even if you are allowed campus access as an employee of the university.  You should have signed up for Blue Pass using your status as an employee.  Please contact our team through helpdesk.bluepass@ateneo.edu to address this (and any other) type of problem.
   2. We are in the process of setting up wifi stations at the main entry points of our Loyola Heights campus, including Gates 1, 3, 3.5, and the steps coming up from De La Costa Housing, as well as the main entrances of Rockwell, ASMPH, and Salcedo campuses.    These wifi stations can be used by anyone who has not been able to fill up his online Health Declaration Form and/or download his personal QR code beforehand due to poor wifi or mobile data signals at home.
4. On Difficulties in Scanning the Building QR Codes
   1. Many members of our community have found it difficult to scan the building QR codes.  The most common reasons for this include:
      1. Poor wifi signal in the area.  We are working to improve our wifi capability at all campus and building access points.  In the meantime, you may have to use your mobile data plans to access Blue Pass.
      2. Hardware issues.
         1. Huawei and Nova mobile devices have difficulty scanning our QR codes. Our technical team is trying to address this problem and hopes to have a solution soon.  For Huawei phones, try using the Firefox browser instead of Chrome.
         2. You might not have allowed the system to access your camera, or the camera on your device might require that you scan the code from a particular angle or at a particular distance.  We have personnel at the major access points to help you learn how to do address these and other technical issues related to your mobile devices.
5. On the Inconvenience of Getting QR Codes on a Daily Basis
   1. These regulations were not formulated by the Ateneo; rather, they are required by IATF, CHED, DOLE, and/or the LGUs in which we operate.  Blue Pass is our effort to operate a system that can most expeditiously meet all of the different regulations that govern our return to campus.
   2. The Blue Pass system may have to be modified over time, as government policies related to on-site work and the conduct of face-to-face classes are modified.   We will continue to communicate regularly with all of our stakeholders to keep everyone abreast of any changes in our Blue Pass procedures and requirements.
   3. Reminder: 
      1. Complete your Health Declaration Form NO MORE THAN 12 HOURS before the day of your campus visit.
      2. Get your QR code ON THE DAY OF YOUR VISIT (beginning at 12:01 am).
      3. Your personal QR codes are requirements for campus access.  Once you are on campus, you are asked to scan the building QR codes for every building you enter, to create a record of your movement within the campus (for contact tracing purposes).
6. Adding Names to Blue Pass (including Driver Nominations)
   1. We cannot accommodate immediate processing of information. Adding names should be done at least 3 working days before the person enters the campus to allow time for approval, encoding, and uploading the driver’s information in the Blue Pass system.
7. Manual Process as a Default System
   1. Over the last two years, we have developed a manual Campus Access Request (CAR system) that has worked quite well for us.  This continues to be the default system in case anyone has any difficulties accessing Blue Pass, or if the Blue Pass system goes down.
   2. We are building redundancy into our system, and are putting up a business continuity plan to try to ensure that our system will always be up and running.
   3. As increasingly large numbers of people return to campus, our manual CAR system will not be sustainable.  We ask for everyone’s help in migrating to the automated Blue Pass system in anticipation of our much-awaited return to our beloved Ateneo campus.

There are doubtless many other situations and challenges not addressed in this memo.  Please do not hesitate to contact our team through <helpdesk.bluepass@ateneo.edu> so that we can help you with any concerns you may have related to the Blue Pass system. We will also be setting up a Blue Pass FAQ page on the Ateneo Website to help walk you through the most frequently encountered problems.   We also welcome all comments and suggestions on how we can improve this system further.

Again, please accept our sincere apologies for a less than smooth rollout of Blue Pass. We will learn from our mistakes, and try to do better going forward.

Thank you for your cooperation, and boundless patience.