Eastern Ontario's top doctor hopes for normal school year
Eastern Ontario's top doctor hopes the new school year will be as "normal as possible", suggesting closing down schools or imposing new restrictions will pose a higher risk to children than COVID-19.
Teachers, students and parents are preparing to return to school in September for the fourth school year since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2019-2020, 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years featured temporary school closures, classroom closures and cohorts in schools at various times.
In his weekly address on the COVID-19 situation, Eastern Ontario medical officer of health Dr. Paul Roumeliotis said layers of protection in the community would help schools this fall.
"I do believe that it’s important for the kids to go back to school as normal as possible," Dr. Roumeliotis said.
"As a pediatrician, I can tell you that I believe the risk of closing down and doing all these restrictions in schools is probably higher than the risk of COVID at this point, although again we need to do our best to vaccinate everybody and use all the other layers of protection as well."
The Eastern Ontario Health Unit is reporting a low uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine for children under the age of 5 since its approval this summer.
Through the summer, the health unit has been "strongly recommending" people take steps to protect yourself and others from COVID-19, including staying up to date on the COVID-19 vaccine, wearing a mask in public indoor settings and crowded outdoor events where distancing is difficult and staying home if you are sick.
Dr. Roumeliotis says the health unit is continuing the rollout of the fourth dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, saying it has helped decrease hospitalizations and severe disease in the region.
The Ontario government will announce the next steps of its "Plan to Stay Open" on Thursday. Health Minister Sylvia Jones said Wednesday that the plan will create stability in the province's health-care system and aid in the post-pandemic recovery.
Looking ahead to the fall, eastern Ontario's top doctor says there will be tools in place to deal with any future COVID-19 waves.
"I do believe that 2023 … perhaps would be the beginning of the end of the pandemic. We still another couple months but we do have the tools," Roumelitois said.
"We have the bivalent vaccine, we have antivirals that we will have a lot of information about … so all those tools in place make me more confident that we'll be able to withstand any little wave."
Several vaccine manufacturers are developing formulas that take into account the more infectious Omicron COVID-19 variant that has been driving cases. The new bivalent vaccine is expected to target the COVID-19 variant.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
'It could be catastrophic': Woman says natural supplement contained hidden painkiller drug
A Manitoba woman thought she found a miracle natural supplement, but said a hidden ingredient wreaked havoc on her health.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
Vicious attack on a dog ends with charges for northern Ont. suspect
Police in Sault Ste. Marie charged a 22-year-old man with animal cruelty following an attack on a dog Thursday morning.
The Body Shop Canada explores sale as demand outpaces inventory: court filing
The Body Shop Canada is exploring a sale as it struggles to get its hands on enough inventory to keep up with "robust" sales after announcing it would file for creditor protection and close 33 stores.
Tropical fish stolen from Beachburg, Ont. restaurant found and returned
Ontario Provincial Police have landed a suspect following a fishy theft in Beachburg, Ont.
U.S. FAA launches investigation into unauthorized personnel in cockpit of Colorado Rockies flight to Toronto
The U.S.’s Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a video that appears to show unauthorized personnel in the cockpit of a charted Colorado Rockies flight to Toronto.