The impact of schools on Covid numbers ‘will not be visible for five to 10 days’



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A public health expert has said that the impact of reopening schools on Covid-19 infection figures will not be clear “for five to ten days.”

Anthony Staines, a professor of health systems at DCU, said schools did not affect the 217 confirmed cases of Covid-19 yesterday, the highest in three months.

Professor Staines said that “the effect will not be visible for five to ten days, but the more broadcast there is in the community, the more difficult it will be to keep schools open and I think it is a very high priority for all of us to keep schools open. and to keep them running without interruptions. “

Dublin was the worst affected county with a total of 103 cases. Elsewhere, there were five cases in Kildare, 17 in Limerick, 17 in Tipperary, seven in Waterford, seven in Wicklow, six in Clare, five in Louth and the remaining 30 were located in Carlow, Cavan, Cork, Donegal, Galway, Kilkenny, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Westmeath and Wexford.

Acting Medical Director Dr. Ronan Glynn says that while the number of cases is substantial, the five-day moving average remains relatively stable at 115 cases per day.

Professor Staines also said that health officials need to better communicate with younger people about the dangers of Covid-19.

“I am not thinking in any malicious or malevolent way, but out of a genuine lack of understanding what is going on, because the messages have not really been directed at them. [young people]. They don’t understand yours, “he said.

“There is certainly a cohort of people who don’t really read newspapers and don’t listen to the radio much. We have to find ways to get to them where they are, that’s a practical issue that NPHET and the Government must overcome in the coming days.”

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