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So we can protect children from the delta variant at school

2021-08-23T18:29:10.999Z


From leaving home, to after-school activities, these are steps we can take to care for Delta variant children on their return to school.


Family man defends use of masks with passionate 1:25 speech

(CNN) -

Millions of students will return to classrooms with a challenge they didn't have to face last year.

The more contagious delta variant is fueling a nationwide Covid-19 outbreak that is sending younger people to hospitals, including children.

The best tool for those 12 and older is vaccination, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

But those too young to get the vaccine also have ways around the delta variant.

Here's how we can help students stay healthy before, during, and after school:

On the way to school

Before You

Go Out

:

Minor symptoms that might have gone unnoticed in the past, like a runny nose, shouldn't now be ignored, according to pediatrician Steven Abelowitz, regional medical director for Coastal Kids Pediatrics in California.

"With the current increase in covid cases, especially in minors, parents of children with mild symptoms are advised to contact their pediatrician to rule out covid," Abelowitz said, concurring with the CDC's guidance.

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Of course, some children can have or spread the delta variant asymptomatically.

So it will be important to be cautious in other parts of the day as well.

At the bus stop:

Talking to a friend in an open space "has a very low risk of contagion of coronavirus," said Dr. Leana Wen, a CNN medical analyst and emergency physician.

"So, at the bus stop, or at break or when leaving school, you can remove the masks."


But if there are many children together, "even if it is in an open space, if you are not vaccinated ... the advantages of masks will far outweigh the downsides, ”Abelowitz said.

On the bus:

"Wearing masks is absolutely crucial as you are in close proximity in an enclosed space," Wen said.

"Make sure you wear a mask that covers your nose and mouth. It should have the quality of at least a three-layer surgical mask," he said.

"There are also KN95 masks, depending on the age of the child, which are much better. But the mask should be at least a three-layer surgical mask. A cloth mask is not enough."

Research suggests that the proper use of surgical grade masks provide greater protection than fabric masks.

If cloth masks are used, the CDC says they will need to be multi-layered.

  • The TSA will extend the mandate of masks in transportation until January

When you share a car with another family:

Carpooling can be safer if you form a “pandemic bubble” with another family.

In this situation, "all adults should be vaccinated and should try to reduce the risks in their lives as much as possible, and essentially, it is like being in the same house with that family," Wen explained.

"If you don't form a pandemic bubble with someone and they share the car, everyone should wear masks and the windows should be open," he said. "You are not completely out of risk, but it reduces it substantially."

In classrooms and hallways

The Importance of Masks This Year:

The CDC recommends that students in kindergarten through 12th grade wear masks to school as the highly communicable delta variant spreads across the nation.

The American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends masks in schools for everyone over the age of 2.

"The delta variant has changed everything," Abelowitz said.

New pediatric COVID-19 cases are "significantly higher than a few months ago, and increasing very rapidly," he said.

"We know that masks reduce the possibility of transmission. We know that there is a significant increase in the delta variant," Abelowitz said.

"If these numbers are not controlled, eventually, unfortunately, the children will not take classes in person."

  • What we've learned from schools reopening: masks work

Get masks that kids like to wear:

There is no use for a child to wear a mask if they are going to be taking it off at school.

"This is something they have to get used to," Wen said. "It might be a good idea to practice wearing the mask at home and make sure you are comfortable with that type of mask."

Wen said her son had to adjust to wearing the mask, but after "a few days at school, it felt natural."

"I think it is important to try, if possible, with different types of masks," he said. "Different people have different levels of comfort."

  • What are the best masks against covid-19 and when to use them?

Some students may prefer one brand of tight-fitting surgical masks over others.

Other children may feel more comfortable wearing KN95 children's masks, which give more space to the nose and mouth.

"The most important thing is to find the best that you can wear consistently throughout the day," Wen said. "You don't want to wear a mask that you want to remove every 20 minutes."

Explaining masks to young children: It

can be difficult to explain the importance of wearing a mask at school for young children.

But you don't need to go into that much detail, Abelowitz said.

For a 6-year-old, “you could simplify it as: 'There are people who are getting sick because of others.

By wearing a mask, you reduce the chance of getting sick, and you also reduce the chance that those around you will get sick, '”Abelowitz said.

"'So that's why it's important that you wear the mask, not only to protect yourself, but also to protect other people.'"

Another advantage for minors: By wearing a mask and not getting sick, they can continue to see their friends at school, Abelowitz said.

How to deal with potential stalkers

Some students may be bullied for wearing a mask.

That's why it's important for children to be confident and prepared for those situations, said psychologist Dr. Sanam Hafeez.

"Parents need to instill in their children that they are doing the right thing by protecting their own health and that of others around them," said Hafeez, director of Comprehensive Consultation Psychological Services in New York.

"They have to build the child's confidence so that they don't feel like they have to 'ditch' the mask to fit or make the bullying stop. The more confident the child is about the decision to wear a mask, the easier it will be to stand firm. ".

Parents can also help prevent this type of bullying in the first place.

"There is an old saying that goes: 'children learn what they live.'

Debate on the use of masks in schools ends tense 1:47

If this type of bullying occurs, the child's response may depend on age.

"For younger kids, like elementary school kids, the simpler the answer, the better," Hafeez said.

"Something like: 'I am being considerate when wearing a mask because I am protecting you so that you do not get COVID. If you put on a mask, you would also protect others.' Advise the child to say that and to stay away and not confront the stalker, "says Hafeez.

If the bully becomes aggressive, the child should seek the help of a teacher.

  • Increase in covid-19 cases in classrooms causes school districts to return to virtual classes and change the rules of use of masks

On the other hand, some students may be harassed for not wearing a mask, for example, if their parents do not want them to wear it.

"It is a difficult situation for a child. They can face words like 'selfish', 'germ spreader', 'disgusting covid' or any other insult that children can say to them," says Hafeez.

"If a child is in this situation and wants to wear a mask, they should talk to their parents about it and explain how bullying makes them feel and share what they have learned about preventing covid by wearing the mask."

"If a parent has prohibited a child under 18 from wearing a mask, the student can say that they would like to wear it, but that is not the choice that their parents have made for them."

Wen said children have a chance to show their maturity if they are bullied for wearing a mask.

For example, they might say, "I wear a mask for my grandmother. I don't want my grandmother to get sick. And I do it to protect the people I love."

Back to recess

If recess is outdoors and the school doesn't require wearing masks outside, "I don't think masks are [necessary] during recess," Wen said.

That does not mean that a student cannot be infected outdoors.

"Right now, there is no zero risk," Wen said.

But "I prefer to focus the use of the mask on indoor situations that are much higher risk."

In areas with a high number of covid-19, and when children are too young to be vaccinated, "encouraging more distance play, even in outdoor settings, can be beneficial to mitigate" the delta variant, Abelowitz said.

  • A father sent his son to school after testing positive for COVID-19;

    more than 80 students were quarantined

Both Wen and Abelowitz said it is good for students to enjoy maskless breaks outside.

"If they are outdoors, and they can keep a certain distance, and there is not a major outbreak in a specific community, we prefer that they are without masks," Abelowitz said.

Enjoy food safely with friends

It is impossible to wear masks while eating.

And after a year of distance or hybrid learning, some coffee shops may be back to full capacity.

"I am concerned about lunchtime. That is a high-risk scenario, depending on how it is set up," Wen said.

"The best setting, obviously, would be outside. But if it's going to be indoors, there should be at least excellent ventilation, some degree of spacing, and the children should all be facing in the same direction rather than sitting across from each other. others".

But once the students have finished eating, they can put on their masks and chat face to face, Wen said.

Some schools have allowed students to bring lunch to their desks to help minimize crowding.

"Eating in socially distant classrooms is definitely better than eating in a dining room with hundreds of children in a small, closed indoor space," Wen said.

One way for students to socialize with different groups of friends is to eat out, if the school allows it, Wen said.

It can be in a yard, on the lawn, or even in a part of the parking lot.

Back to the fun after class

Even the best precautions during school can be overridden if children catch COVID-19 during after-school activities.

And some students may let their guard down after school, Wen said.

  • Children are facing more risks from covid-19.

    This is what parents can do

"You have to remember that informal settings can be as risky, if not more so, than formal ones," Wen said.

"I think a lot of people worry about what happens when we are playing sports and we don't think about what happens in the locker room," he said.

"If children meet in the locker room, spend time together, without masks, that is a much higher risk scenario than being outside playing a sport."

The CDC warned of outbreaks related to after-school activities last year.

And that was months before the delta variant, the most contagious strain of the new coronavirus to reach the United States, emerged as the dominant strain.

Those who were infected last year may not be fully protected from the delta variant this year, especially those who are not vaccinated, Abelowitz said.

"We have seen that [...] based on the alpha variant or the previous variant, there are people who have been infected with covid who can become infected again," said the pediatrician.

"So we know for sure that they can get infected again, especially since there are different variants."

Abelowitz said children should be vaccinated as soon as they are eligible.

  • FDA Gives Full Approval to Pfizer / BioNTech Covid-19 Vaccine, Opening Door to More Vaccination Orders

Meanwhile, "close contact sports, indoor sports are considered risky," Abelowitz said.

The risk is widened in areas with a high number of COVID-19 infections and low vaccination rates.

Activities like choir and band, in which students blow their breath into the air, can also be high-risk, Abelowitz said.

But that doesn't mean that indoor sports and activities should be put aside.

Abelowitz and Wen said that schools may consider conducting regular COVID-19 testing for students engaged in high-risk activities.

And whenever possible, after-school workouts should take place outdoors, Wen said.

If COVID-19 numbers are high in a community and not many children are vaccinated, a school may consider interrupting higher-risk activities until the situation improves, Abelowitz said.

  • 7 Ways to Support Kids' Immune Systems as They Go Back to School and Await the Covid-19 Vaccine

All of these safety precautions may seem daunting to some children.

Therefore, it is important to emphasize what children can do now, rather than what they cannot do, as they return to face-to-face learning, Wen said.

"It's more empowering to be able to say, 'This is what you can do at school, even play outside ... even get back in sports,'" she said.

"We should empower and talk about what the child can do that is fun ... and what are the things the child can do to reduce the risk to themselves and others around them."

School opening Delta variant

Source: cnnespanol

All news articles on 2021-08-23

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