Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology Specialist Dr. Servet Öztürk, Istanbul Okan University Hospital provided information on protection against coronavirus for children starting school.
Children over 12 years old should be vaccinated
All adults and children over the age of 12 should be vaccinated with the Covid-19 vaccine to prevent disease transmission. Vaccines are relatively inexpensive, safe and effective.
Children should be given hygiene education
Children should be educated about mask-distance and hand hygiene. The importance of masks should be emphasized, especially in closed areas, and it should be encouraged to disinfect their hands with alcohol-based products in case of physical contact.
Different age groups should be restricted as a group
Mixing different grades and age groups at school or in extracurricular activities should be restricted.
They should not gather in large groups
An awareness should be generated to ensure that students do not gather in large groups or nearby when queuing or leaving the classroom.
Schools should be disinfected frequently
Cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces can help reduce the risk of illness. Commonly used door handles, taps, keyboards are particularly risky, and these surfaces and hands should be disinfected after use.
School uniforms should be washed daily
Considering that the virus remains alive on inanimate surfaces for a while; Daily washing of school uniforms and bathing of preschool and primary school students, who are more limited in compliance with mask-distance-hygiene rules, can reduce the risk of infection.
However, it should not be forgotten that daily change of clothes and bath application in disease transmission does not replace hand hygiene-mask application-distance measures.
