Canadian health officials warn schools of potentially critical role in slowing coronavirus spread

Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, seen here in Ottawa on Feb. 3, 2020, has also warned Canadians to prepare for the possibility that schools may need to close.From stocking up on hand sanitizer and wipes to cancelling overseas trips, school boards are preparing for COVID-19 as public health officials warn of the potentially critical role schools will play in slowing the spread of the virus.

Children are “generally less compliant with effective hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette practices,” the Public Health Agency of Canada wrote in its new guidelines for schools and child-care facilities to manage the risks of the virus. The guidelines ask schools to boost the availability of hand sanitizers, do away with perfect attendance awards, monitor students for signs of illness and restrict children from sharing food.

“We are hearing from parents with concerns and questions when they hear about new cases in the news, or there are rumours that are going around the community. What we’re doing is providing as much as factual information as possible, and referring them to Toronto Public Health,” Mr. Bird said. Catherine Shedden, a spokeswoman for the Trillium Lakelands District School Board in Lindsay, Ont., said the board is buying hand sanitizer for schools and has ordered wipes for teachers to have in classrooms. One high-school trip to France this month has been cancelled, and while other international trips do not leave until later in the spring, they may be cancelled as well, she said.

We don’t even have soap in our classrooms! And we get written up if we bring our own from home. I have 150 kids on my floor sharing two bathrooms w soap...

LOL Canadian teachers don't care about educating children, you think they're going to care about their health?

I thought hand sanitizer won't kill the virus. It's resistant to the kind of alcohol they generally use in them.

Ban flights !!!!

What about daycares?

Yet the flights from China and Iran carry on. Nice.

kids do not wash their hands get a grip

Oh really,, yet the tdsb (for example) has not increased cleaning and is waiting for direction. Why is the media ignoring this ! Is TOPublicHealth incompetent ?

rexglacer

sfleece PeelSchools - is there any funding to support this? 9/10 schools have crummy hand dryers only.

Cancel the large gathering

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