Thread by @awong37

Many #SK families are worried re: return to school Jan 3. How safe are our kids & school staff?

Omicron in Regina and Saskatoon is surging. We'll continue to see record case numbers for weeks.

@SKGov, what's your plan? We NEED to know.

A 🧵 on safe schools, below. (1/n)

Let's begin with other provinces who are RIGHT in the storm of their Omicron surges. Quebec has delayed opening of 'everything' to Jan 17. Ontario has delayed opening till Jan 5 to try to distribute HEPA filters & N95s for staff (not students). (2/n)

cbc.ca/news/canada/to…

A respected colleague in Toronto, @drmwarner, reasonably argues for a 1-2 week delay IF a delay will increase booster doses for school/daycare staff, improve vaccine uptake for ages 5-11, & solidify distribution of HEPA/N95s/RATs in schools. (3/n)

https://twitter.com/drmwarner/status/1476992621952307204

Another respected colleague in Toronto, @SharkawyMD, puts it bluntly & truthfully: kids & staff ARE NOT safe w/ Omicron surging.

The "we're going to all get it so f*** it" narrative is NOT AN EXCUSE to improve safety measures in schools/daycares. (4/n)

https://twitter.com/SharkawyMD/status/1476960112610844675

Manitoba has delayed school opening to Jan 10. Below, @kyle_penner, a community leader & fellow parent in southern #MB, lays it out clearly.

Basically: "Tell us WHAT the plan is. If there's NO plan, tell us. Be honest. Don't pretend it's safe." (5/n)

https://twitter.com/kyle_penner/status/1476797763824275459

We know ALL the measures that can help keep schools & daycares safe.

✅ High-quality universal masking (N95s)
✅ High vaccine uptake for staff & kids
✅ Optimized ventilation & filtration
✅ Liberal use of RATs
✅ Timely outbreak communication & management

So far, @SKGov? (6/n)

Sorry, but hospitalizations / ICU admissions alone don't reflect the risk to our kids & school / daycare staff.

BTW, #SK case numbers are EXPLODING. What's the plan?

I think ALL #SK families care about keeping their kids safe. This isn't about "personal freedoms". (7/n)

Improving ventilation & filtration isn't infringing on personal freedoms.

Providing high quality respirators for ALL isn't infringing on personal freedoms.

Resourcing testing & outbreak management isn't infringing on personal freedoms.

So, what's the plan, @SKGov? (8/n)

What about supporting #SK families who want to keep their kids home from school?

What about helping @SK families who need to isolate b/c they're close contacts / COVID+? Paid sick leave?

That's not infringing on personal freedoms. That's SUPPORTING your people. (9/n)

#SK parents can't make the best possible decisions for their children when we're not informed. Every family's situation and risk tolerance is going to be different.

If there's no plan and you're leaving everything to the local school divisions to sort, tell us, @SKGov. (10/n)

If there's a plan to optimize safety for kids & staff such that a delay in opening would give us time to accomplish these tasks, tell us & make it happen.

If you want to delay opening to mitigate community transmission of Omicron in #SK, tell us. (11/n)

BUT: if there's NO plan except to watch hospital & ICU numbers & let Omicron flood #SK in a rush to "endemicity", tell us.

Complications of COVID like MIS-C (kids) & long COVID (adults & kids) are NOT trivial.

Let #SK families make informed decisions, please (12/n)

Finally, a personal note. As parents of 3 children, 2 of whom are too young to get jabbed + a 5 year-old who is fortunate enough to be fully vaccinated, we're STRUGGLING to know what best to do.

Our kids attend a newer facility where ventilation is likely better. (13/n)

They have been home all holidays and DESPERATELY want to go back to school & daycare to see their friends, interact socially, etc.

We have the means to keep our kids home, but many others do not. We recognize the huge impact of our kids missing in-person activities. (14/n)

We also recognize the absolute risk of MIS-C and long COVID for our kids is very low, but what if it happens to one of them and impacts them forever? That's a scary thought.

How to balance all these competing risks & benefits? It's SO tough. No clear right answer. (15/n)

We KNOW @RegPublicSchool has done so much already to help keep schools safe and consult regularly with our public health officials. Thank you!

While I'm there, thanks to ALL #SK school divisions who have prioritized the safety of kids & their staff. (16/n)

It's FRUSTRATING as a parent to know that @SKGov squandered ALL this time where they could have done SOMETHING to make schools safer. Now Omicron's here. We're out of time.

We'll optimize our kids masks and monitor day-by-day. It's all we can really do as parents. (17/n)

To conclude, we NEED to hear SOMETHING from @SKGov regarding plans for safe schools. NO plan? Tell us. Offloading everything to school boards? Tell us.

No communication? That means there's no plan. Not to mention SUPER lame.

#SK parents & kids deserve better. Thank you.

/end