17 percent of all corona infections in the district last took place in the age group of six to 16 year olds.
But not only the infected children are not allowed to attend classes for several days, but also their “close contacts” in the classroom.
BY STEFANIE ZIPFER
Dachau
- The “goal” of maintaining face-to-face teaching in Bavaria has so far been “well achieved”, emphasized State Chancellor Florian Herrmann recently.
Accordingly, the proportion of students in Bavaria who cannot attend classes because of a positive corona test is currently 0.35 percent.
Immediately before the requirement to wear a mask in class three weeks ago, this rate was slightly lower at 0.27 percent.
But the number of corona infections is rising again.
In the nationwide top ten districts with the highest incidence values, nine are from the Free State.
Dachau is doing comparatively well - with a green hospital traffic light - with a seven-day incidence of 118.6 (as of Friday).
But here, too, the trend is upwards - especially among school children.
In principle, the rule in schools since September has been the following: Classes take place in person, regardless of the seven-day incidence.
However, health authorities can order restrictions for individual classes, grades or schools depending on the infection rate.
If a child tests positive, the whole class no longer has to be in quarantine since this school year, but only "close contact persons", such as those around the table.
The quarantine lasts 14 days for infected children and ten days for the contact persons.
The latter, however, can test themselves prematurely with a negative rapid test after five days.
Vaccinated and convalescent people are exempt from the quarantine obligation, unless they develop symptoms.
"However, if more than one positive case is detected in the class and this can be traced back to the contact in the school, this is to be assessed as an outbreak and the entire class is to be quarantined," says a corresponding explanation from the Dachau health department. The quarantine rules do not only apply to classrooms: "Even in the event of an infection in the after-school care center, the close contact persons to the infected child are determined and must isolate themselves at home," explains District Office spokeswoman Silke Lein.
The much discussed air filters for the classrooms do not seem to bring any relief to the schools. As reported, the city of Dachau also decided to buy the expensive equipment because the Bavarian Ministry of Culture suggested in the summer that the quarantine rules would be relaxed as soon as the classrooms were equipped with these equipment. When asked whether this announcement from Munich has meanwhile resulted in corresponding specifications, the district office does not receive an answer. Spokeswoman Lein only says: "Air filters can reduce, but not exclude, the risk of infection if they are used properly and regularly maintained."
Currently, the corona situation in the - mostly filterless - city and district schools is as follows: In addition to the 57 infected school children between the ages of six and 16, there are currently 214 "close contact persons" of the children - i.e. schoolmates - in quarantine (as of Friday).
According to the health department, “about 80 percent of the infected children have a symptomatic, but mild course, which is similar to a cold or mild flu”.
In the meantime, vaccination comes to the "little ones", as medical doctor Dr.
Christian Günzel calls the zero to twelve year olds, making good progress.
The seven-day incidence in this age group is currently comparatively low in the Dachau district with a value of around 110;
in the Berchtesgadener Land district, for example, the incidence of children is just 600!
Of course, "the run" for corona injections is not quite as pronounced among the younger ones as it is among the older population, as the doctor explains.
But the children would always surprise him at how well informed and differentiated they are about the situation.
Most, according to Günzel, would get vaccinated in order to avoid homeschooling and other restrictions on their freedom: "They are simply fed up with Corona." Of the around 104,000 first vaccinations that have been administered in the district so far, 3,685 were accordingly to under 20-year-olds.
For children and parents who refused to be vaccinated at school, vaccination advocate Günzel nevertheless understands: “Ideally,” the doctor who knows the child should do the vaccination;
this is the pediatrician, not the vaccine doctor who eventually comes to school.