Hangzhou reported that many primary school students tested positive for COVID-19! How to protect yourself during this period?

On February 19, according to Chao News and Zhejiang Daily, students who tested positive for COVID-19 were found in two primary and secondary schools in Hangzhou. The school responded that epidemic prevention work was being carried out in an orderly manner and parents did not need to panic.

Has the novel coronavirus "disappeared"? According to the latest "National Novel Coronavirus Epidemic Situation" released by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention on February 18, although the number of novel coronavirus infections has dropped significantly, the number of novel coronavirus infections still exists, with more than 5,000 new infections every day.

In an interview, Professor Zeng Guang, a well-known public health and epidemiology expert, said that the new coronavirus has not completely disappeared, but has only entered a low-level epidemic stage. Monitoring needs to be strengthened, and each individual still needs to continue to take necessary protective measures.

Two primary and secondary schools in Hangzhou have COVID-19 positive students

School: Epidemic prevention work is being carried out in an orderly manner, parents do not need to panic

On the evening of the 19th, a parent notice for Class 2 (3) of a public primary school in Xihu District was circulated in multiple parent groups in Hangzhou.

The notice stated that in order to prevent the spread of the epidemic in the classroom and to better protect the health of every child, according to the decision of the superior document, classes will be suspended for four days from February 20 to 23 (Monday to Thursday). Students who have no physical discomfort symptoms and negative antigen or nucleic acid test results will return to school on February 24.

Another piece of news was also spreading among various parent groups: multiple classes in a public junior high school in Gongshu District had multiple cases of COVID-19 infection, and most of the infected students had not tested positive before.

The two pieces of news continued to spread among parents, causing some parents to feel anxious. "Both of our children have not tested positive yet. Is this news true? Is a new wave of COVID-19 infections coming?" A parent whose children attend primary school in Xihu District and junior high school in Gongshu District sent several messages in one breath.

Chao News·Zhejiang Daily immediately confirmed with the relevant persons in charge or parents of the two primary and secondary schools, and both pieces of news were confirmed to be true.

The relevant person in charge of the Xihu District public primary school said that the school has made follow-up arrangements in accordance with the requirements of relevant departments, and all work is proceeding in an orderly manner. Parents are requested not to panic. After the new coronavirus is "class B and B", this may become the new normal.

A parent whose child is in the second grade of the public junior high school in Gongshu District also said that as far as she knows, there have been several students diagnosed with the virus in the school. There are several students diagnosed with the virus in her child's class. Taking her child's class as an example, all students who show symptoms of COVID-19 infection need to be tested for antigens, while other students without symptoms can still go to school at a normal pace. Students diagnosed with the virus can study at home, while other students can continue to attend classes.

"We found that several students in the class who showed symptoms of new coronavirus infection and were diagnosed with positive results had never tested positive before." The parent said that judging from the reaction of the class group, the class may have experienced the peak of the epidemic infection, and the parents were quite calm.

On February 19, the news that "many students in two schools in Hangzhou have fever and classes will be suspended next week" attracted attention on the Internet. On February 20, Chao News Qianjiang Evening News learned from the Hangzhou Municipal Epidemic Prevention and Control Command that three schools in Hangzhou are currently involved, namely a primary school in Xihu District (a total of 10 cases, all of which are first-time infections with the new crown); a middle school in Gongshu District (a total of 5 cases, all of which are first-time infections with the new crown). In addition, 12 students in a primary school in Shangcheng District have fever symptoms, which is a clustered spread of influenza. The above three schools have temporarily adjusted the teaching courses of the classes involved according to the corresponding plans. The relevant person in charge of the Municipal Epidemic Prevention and Control Command introduced that it is normal for several students in individual school classes in Hangzhou to be infected with the new crown virus (all for the first time), which does not represent the beginning of a new wave of epidemics. In addition, influenza A and norovirus infections have also entered a high-incidence period. Even if children have symptoms such as fever, it is not necessarily caused by the new crown virus. It is recommended that parents help their children to undergo antigen testing as soon as possible. Since Hangzhou has implemented the various tasks of "Class B and Class B Management" in a stable and orderly manner, all functional departments have made corresponding plans and measures. Take the education department as an example. Before the start of school, the reserves of medicines and antigen detection reagents in all schools have met the standards. After the infection occurs on campus, primary and secondary schools and kindergartens will implement the prevention and control measures proposed by the district education bureau in conjunction with the health, disease control and other departments in accordance with the class or grade to ensure the health and safety of students and maintain normal teaching order. The Municipal Epidemic Prevention and Control Command Center calls on the general public to pay attention to personal and family protection. Wash your hands frequently, wear a mask correctly, ventilate more, maintain good personal habits, and be the first person responsible for your own health.

Many places in Zhejiang have previously made it clear that students

Health monitoring is required before returning to school

On January 7 this year, the Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council issued the "Operational Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of New Coronavirus Infections" (hereinafter referred to as the "Guidelines"). Regarding campus epidemic prevention, the "Guidelines" propose that college teachers and students are not required to provide nucleic acid certificates when entering and leaving the school gate and public areas of the campus. According to actual needs and local conditions, primary and secondary schools and kindergartens carry out appropriate antigen or nucleic acid tests such as screening, rotation inspections, and random inspections for teachers and students. Teachers and students no longer need to provide nucleic acid certificates when entering and leaving the school gate, and other outsiders must provide nucleic acid or antigen negative certificates to enter the campus. According to the guidelines, during the peak of the epidemic, primary and secondary schools and kindergartens will adopt strict closed management, and colleges and universities can implement zoning management. Primary and secondary schools are based on classes. After the infection occurs, the county (district) level education administrative department where the school is located will propose and implement prevention and control measures together with the health, disease control and other departments. If an infected person appears in a kindergarten, temporary closure measures can be taken. After the epidemic is lifted, schools should resume normal education and teaching order in a timely manner.
Zhejiang Online reported on February 1 this year that some primary and secondary schools and kindergartens in Hangzhou, Shaoxing, Jinhua and other places in Zhejiang Province issued school opening notices, asking parents and students to make preparations for the start of school in advance, and clearly stating that "health monitoring and antigen or nucleic acid testing are required before school starts. If the test result is positive, return to school will be delayed."
The education bureaus in Wenzhou, Huzhou, Zhoushan, Lishui and other places recommend that students conduct self-health checks seven days before the start of school. They can return to school if they have no symptoms and do not need to provide nucleic acid or antigen negative certificates.

Has the new crown "disappeared"? The number of new positive cases per day is still above 5,000

According to the six "National Novel Coronavirus Infection Situation" reports released by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention since February, there were 24,000 positive nucleic acid tests on January 30, 9,000 positive nucleic acid tests on February 6, 8,847 positive nucleic acid tests on February 13, and 10,720 positive nucleic acid tests on February 16. Although the number of positive nucleic acid tests and the positive rate have dropped significantly, the number of infected people still exists. Since February, the number of positive nucleic acid tests reported by 31 provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities) and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps has increased by more than 5,000 cases per day.

In addition, according to the latest "National New Coronavirus Epidemic Situation" released by the China CDC on February 18, on February 16, the number of patients visiting fever clinics (examination rooms) nationwide (excluding Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) was 124,000, and there were 20,000 people infected with the new coronavirus in hospitals, including 56 severe patients.

According to the "National Novel Coronavirus Epidemic Situation" released by the China CDC on February 18, from December 1, 2022 to February 16, 2023, a total of 15 local key variants were found in the country, including 1 XBB.1, 1 XBB.1.5, 1 BQ.1, 5 BQ.1.1, 1 BQ.1.1.17, 4 BQ.1.2 and 2 BQ.1.8.

Compared with the "National Novel Coronavirus Epidemic Situation" previously released by the China Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this time there was a new case of the BQ.1 variant strain. In the report released on February 15, there was also a new case of the XBB.1.5 strain.

"The overall situation is relatively good at present, but whether new variants appear and spread, whether the infection rate increases, whether new strains are introduced from abroad, etc., are still the focus of our monitoring." Zeng Guang said. "The impact of the new crown on people's lives has not completely disappeared." Zeng Guang said that for the public, they should still remain cautious and take basic protective measures.

How to protect yourself during this period?

According to the "Operational Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of New Coronavirus Infections in Schools" issued by the National Health Commission and the relevant reminders issued by the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the key points of epidemic prevention are as follows:

1. It is recommended that teachers and students monitor their own health. If they have symptoms such as fever, dry cough, fatigue, sore throat, etc., they should not go to school to study or work while sick .

2. Adhere to good hygiene habits such as frequent hand washing, frequent ventilation, regular work and rest, healthy diet, and pay attention to coughing etiquette. Take personal protection when taking public transportation and do not touch your mouth, eyes, and nose with unwashed hands.

3. If any student develops symptoms such as fever, dry cough, fatigue, sore throat, etc., he/she should go to the school health observation room for examination in time, go home or seek medical treatment according to the condition, and do not attend classes while sick .

4. Adhere to the prevention of multiple diseases. It is still the peak season for influenza and norovirus acute gastroenteritis. While doing a good job in the prevention and control of the new crown epidemic, pay attention to personal protection and hand hygiene, strictly clean and process food, scientific disinfection of pollutants and other measures, and do a good job in relevant epidemic prevention and control.