School is back in session for the children of Saskatchewan this week. But one of the parents and the virologist think it is not safe.
“We have decided to wait at least a couple of days, possibly a week, week and a half, before sending them back,” Alyson Kelvin said in an interview.
Kelvin and her husband are keeping their daughters Chloe, 12, and Hannah, 14, out of the classroom for at least a little longer, because they are concerned that the highly communicable COVID-19 variant of Omicron could emerge after the holidays.
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“People were going out, they had Christmas gatherings where they could possibly get the virus,” Kelvin said.
“This will come back to the community if we don’t have systems in place to prevent it.”
Elementary and middle school students say they will miss classes and their friends, but they know they will be safer at home.
“I was a little nervous (to go back),” Chloe said, “especially since a lot of kids don’t wear the mask properly or don’t take it off at school.”
Both have experienced remote learning in the past and prefer to be in the classroom because they can spend time with their friends and teachers.
“It’s not like the teacher is giving us the job (like when we are at a distance),” Hannah said.
There are no provincial plans for remote learning, so both will rely on their teachers and friends to provide their assignments.
Kelvin’s decision was based on both his parental instincts and professional opinion.
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She is a virologist and vaccinologist at VIDO-Intervac, where she is helping develop a COVID-19 vaccine.
Most school-age children are now eligible to receive their vaccinations and are therefore less likely to transmit the virus. But that’s not enough during a surge. Kelvin knows that vaccines are critical to ending the pandemic, but they do not offer complete protection.
“The vaccine was designed to reduce the severity of the disease and not necessarily to reduce the infection,” Kelvin said.
That means vaccinated people can still get infected. Being vaccinated makes them less likely to suffer a serious illness that leads to hospitalization, long-term symptoms, or death.
But he said the virus, and especially the Omicron variant, will still spread because children have only recently become eligible for their vaccinations, which means there won’t be enough full vaccinations, and because some people aren’t vaccinated yet.
“This will lead to a further spread of the virus, as well as more cases, more severe cases and hospitalizations, ”said Kelvin.
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While Omicron may be milder than Delta, it is still COVID-19 and can cause infected people to need extensive medical care or be fatal.
The family knows what can happen when someone is infected.
Kelvin’s youngest nephew contracted COVID in the spring and still suffers from vision problems.
Kelvin says it’s important to keep ICUs clear to help those in need, including his daughter, Chloe, who has asthma.
“We often have to take her to get treatment for her asthma, to the emergency room, to the emergency room. If the hospital is overwhelmed, you may not be able to get this treatment when it’s needed, ”Kelvin said.
Regarding school closings, Kelvin said the provincial government and school boards should consider the burden of cases in local jurisdictions.
He also said authorities should implement frequent testing and encourage three-layer masks, not the fabric variety.
Kelvin hopes that science-based strategies and a sense of community will keep her daughters safe, so they don’t have to risk their health for their education.
Reference-globalnews.ca