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School closures should be avoided at all costs. Health Minister Alain Berset (48) made this clear at a press conference this week. This is also the opinion of the Corona scientific working group. “The basic right to education must be preserved as far as possible,” he wrote in his latest communication.
School closures should only be the “extreme measure in case of high infection rates.” However, the working group also proposes adjustments to the applicable rules. Since schools are “not the main driver of the epidemic”, more specific quarantine rules are needed, because too many children are currently in quarantine.
The canton doctor must decide on quarantine.
Therefore, the Working Group recommends making the rules more flexible. Children under 12 years of age have a lower risk of infection and transmission. And for children with long-term colds, it is to be feared that testing abilities may reach their limits. If that’s the case, experts recommend testing only for severe, long-lasting symptoms.
The pediatrician gives the go-ahead: Are children more contagious than previously thought?(01:58)
Also: in a corona case, not the entire class should be quarantined, but only the closest contacts, such as neighbors at the bank. Above all, however, this decision should not be left to the schools or parents, but to the cantonal doctors.
Preferred vacation
In many places, entire classes are currently under quarantine, until the closure of the school in question. In Schaffhausen and Glarus, the Christmas holidays will also be brought forward a week. In addition, there are scenarios under discussion in various cantons, according to which school should be out a little longer after the holidays, as reported by the “Tages-Anzeiger”.
It is not yet fully understood how severely children are affected by Corona and how much they transmit the virus. And with the high number of cases, the number of cases in schools is also increasing. However, according to the task force, scientific findings indicate that the risk of infection in children is actually lower.
Christoph Berger (58) from Zurich Children’s Hospital has also given the go-ahead. No more children would get corona than adults, even if it seems like it sometimes. (gbl)
