The following is a statement released by KFLA Public Health:
On Monday, the Algonquin Lakeshore Catholic District School Board, Limestone District School Board, and KFL&A Public Health shared updated COVID-19 screening protocols with school communities, to support safe and healthy school environments in our region. In response to the new online school screening tool that was launched by the province on September 14, 2020.
KFL&A Public Health has collaborated with the school board administration to develop school board protocols that will assist school staff and parents and guardians on how to address COVID-19 situations at the school.
Key updates in the school protocols include:
- Asymptomatic housemates or siblings of symptomatic students or staff do not need to go for testing and may continue to attend school while monitoring for symptoms as long as the symptomatic individual is seeking testing or waiting for test results.
- Students and staff who have received a negative COVID-19 test result may return to school 24 hours after symptoms have started to improve.
- Requirements for 14 days of isolation for students and staff who choose not to be tested, as well as siblings and housemates, unless all of the following apply:
- a health care provider has diagnosed the student or staff with another illness
- the student or staff does not have a fever (without using medication)
- it has been at least 24 hours since symptoms started improving.
KFL&A Public Health strongly recommends that an individual with any COVID-19 symptom, and no known alternative diagnosis, should be tested for COVID-19. It’s important to note that the diagnosis of another infection does not exclude the possibility of also being infected with COVID-19. Being tested will reduce the risk of unknowingly spreading COVID-19.
For additional information on the return to school, please visit www.kflaph.ca/COVID19Schools.