Is there a realistic action plan? What will school do if a student develops symptoms of Covid-19

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The first school week of this year in Latvian schools is almost over and both parents and children have probably made conclusions about how the new order of things works.

With their experience, impressions and reflections on behavioral and other regulations, people in educational institutions generously share on social networks, but so far there has been no talk about the school management plan in case a child is found to have respiratory symptoms. .

The guidelines in such cases have been published by the MES on its website. We offer them in a transparent format, below.

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What to do if a student has signs of respiratory disease?

The recommended action for pre-school educational institutions, as well as general and vocational education institutions, if a case of infection is suspected or detected in an institution, is as follows:

If an employee of the institution develops signs of acute respiratory infectious disease (fever, cough, shortness of breath) while performing work duties, the employee is obliged to stop performing work duties and go home, inform the person in charge of the institution by phone and contact a family doctor to arrange further treatment. mode.

If contact with other people in the institution or on public transport is possible, the employee must wear a face mask or mouth and nose mask.

In this case, the school employee can return to work only on the doctor’s instructions, with the doctor concluding an incapacity for work sheet.

If a pupil develops signs of an acute respiratory infection (fever, cough, shortness of breath) while in an institution, the institution has:

The pupil should be isolated in a separate room and, if necessary according to the pupil’s age, the same adult who had previously been in contact with him / her should be present to avoid the risk of infection, the pupil should wear a face mask or nose and mouth mask and a medical face mask. mask.

The recommendations then include contacting the learner’s parents or legal representatives, who should arrive immediately after the learner. Parents should contact their GP by telephone.

The guidelines published by the Ministry of Education and Science state that such a student will be treated “according to the state of health” and “will return to the institution according to the instructions of the attending physician”.

If an employee or student is diagnosed with a serious illness in a particular institution, the Emergency Medical Service (EMS) is called.

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If symptoms are found in two or more people

If signs of an acute respiratory infection are detected in two or more learners and a group illness is suspected, the institution follows the institution’s infectious disease control procedures – isolates students by ensuring the presence of an adult, uses face masks and mouth / nose pads to warm up, communicates with , or legal representatives and provide information by telephone to the epidemiologist of the relevant regional division of the Center for Disease Prevention and Control (SPKC).

The MES recommendations also state that if a learner or an employee of the institution is diagnosed with Covid-19 and the case is epidemiologically related to the particular institution, SPKC epidemiologists will determine specific anti-epidemic measures according to the specific situation and provide individual recommendations to the institution’s management, stakeholders, and decide on the need for quarantine for a particular class or establishment.

In this case, the head of the institution will be obliged to follow the instructions of the SPC, according to the material published by the Ministry of Education and Science.

The head of the institution will have to inform the founder of the institution about this fact and the instructions received by the SPKC, while the representative of the founder will have to inform the State Education Quality Service about the fact if the institution is quarantined.

The ministry also informed about the readiness of schools for the new school year at a press conference on 31 August:

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Watch the live press conference for the new school year at the State Education Content Center, Ilga Šuplinska

Posted by Ministry of Education and Science on Monday, 31 August 2020

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One case of Covid-19 will not mean the closure of the class

In a conversation with the media, SPīC public relations specialist Edīte Tettere has already pointed out that in a situation when a child would be diagnosed with Covid-19, the further course of events may be different.

“Each case is reviewed and evaluated by specialists, so it is impossible to say that the whole class and all students’ families will be isolated. If there is one patient in the class or 10 patients at once, then there are completely different action scenarios, and they cannot be predicted unambiguously. Of course, if there are a lot of patients, the class will most likely close. Parents need to understand that this is done in order to localize the outbreak as soon as possible. If it is necessary to act and what class and school will have to be closed, then it will be neither the will of the state nor the SPKC, but a justified action, ”said the representative of the SPKC.

Tettere pointed out that, in general, it is not possible to predict whether the class where the patient is, will be quarantined or isolated – there is currently no common algorithm to be followed.

“It all depends on the number of patients, the size of the school and the way the learning process is organized, who the child has been in contact with and when the symptoms of the disease have appeared. There are many factors to consider. If a school or classroom is closed, it will be carefully assessed, ”explained a representative of the SPKC.

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What happens if Covid-19 is discovered in the classroom?

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Teacher: Individual or individualized approach – what do students gain?

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The experience of the world and also of Latvia shows that the course of the disease is relatively easier in children than in adults. Of course, there are exceptions and it is not always possible to predict how the disease will develop in a particular child. It should also be taken into account that if a child has a congenital ailment, he may become more ill.