Following the wake-up call that organizations such as the National Federation of Nurse and Nurse Associations of Chile (Fenasenf), the Medical College and the College of Teachers make to the authorities, because of the lack of security that exists today for a safe return to face-to-face classes, the Government and Education Minister Raúl Figueroa met with some of their union leaders and announced that such a return would be flexible.
A message that, while calming the ad portas waters of the start of a new school year, does not address the fundamental problem: the safety of the student population, one that guarantees the health and well-being of both schoolchildren and their families. Because children do get sick, just like adults, even though the number of cases is lower. They get sick and in some cases severely, as evidence has shown that they may develop pediatric multisistmic inflammatory syndrome.
The epidemiological report delivered by the Minsal on 22 February indicates that between 0 and 9 years old, there are more than 38,000 cases of Covid-19 contagion (men and women) and between 10 and 14 years, 23,747. But that’s not all. A report by the Doctor of Public health and academic at the University of Valparaiso Catalina González Hidalgo, found that the lethality of children and adolescents in our country is greater than that observed in the United States, Germany and Italy.
Nor can we ignore the news coming from the latter country, where many schools have had to close due to the high rate of contagion caused by the English variant of coronavirus, which by the way is already in Chile, and has hit children between the age of 8 and 19.
This flexibility given by the Government for a face-to-face return is a door that opens without certainty of its consequences, engsing responsibility for the health of parents and fathers, but do they have all the tools to make a decision in an informed manner? Are protocols related to the organization, logistics and implementation of a secure face-to-face class process being complied with? What if a child gets it? Is it the responsibility of that parent who sent his or her daughter or son to school? o Is it from the authority or school that they do not meet the necessary conditions?
The document “Strategic School Nursing Plan for the Safe Return to Classrooms during the Pandemic by SARS-CoV-2”, prepared by the Chilean Society of Nursing in School Health (Sochiese), is a blunt tool that should be considered throughout Chile, as it delivers the safety conditions that establishments require to sustain face-to-face classes in pandemic, and consistent with the recommendations we have delivered from Fennfase.
Space sanitization is not the panacea against coronavirus. Of course it helps, but the infrastructure and protocols for using it are also vital. It is well known that there are establishments that until last year did not have health resolution or did not meet the conditions to comply with security protocols, showing once again the economic gap, inequality between them. Capacity in classrooms and feeding canteens (although minsal recommends 1 child x over 3 m2, it must meet the dimensions of space and age and student); security in the mobility of entry and exit of the establishment; sink and disposal of alcohol gel according to the number of children; sanitization and ventilation of rooms, are some of the minimum measures, which must be taken into account.
The figure of the school nurse appears as an urgent necessity, as we have requested since the pandemic began. She is the link between the health and education system, which can deliver a comprehensive safeguarding environment not only in cases of health emergency. Her presence should be a permanent asset in all public and private schools, as she has all the skills and knowledge to deal with the physical, psychic and social well-being of students. Having a professional in each Municipal Education Directorate throughout the country, would be the beginning for a radical improvement of health from the community.
We already have evidence and studies so that no mistakes are made in Chile. Today there are no conditions for a safe return to the classrooms. And if my son or daughter gets sick: Whose fault is it?
The content poured into this opinion column is the sole responsibility of its author, and does not necessarily reflect the editorial line or position of El Mostrador.
