Ottawa's top doctor urges parents to limit extra-curricular activities, sleepovers for unvaccinated children
Ottawa's medical officer of health is urging parents of unvaccinated children to limit close contacts, including extra-curricular activities with different groups and sleepovers, to stop transmission and keep COVID-19 outbreaks in schools "rare and limited."
In a letter to parents Friday afternoon, Dr. Vera Etches says her outlook for fall is one of "cautious optimism", noting first dose vaccination rates among residents 12 and older is approaching 90 per cent and hospitalizations remain low.
However, Etches says children under 12 remain unvaccinated and COVID-19 rates are highest in children 5 to 11 years-old.
"I know it can be concerning when you hear of COVID-19 cases in schools. We need your help to keep outbreaks rare and limited, so children and youth do not miss in-person school by having to stay home after an exposure to COVID-19."
Fifty-six of the 286 active cases of COVID-19 in Ottawa on Friday involve children under the age of 10.
Etches says while many parents and guardians are vaccinated, it's still "very important" for families to choose actions that make COVID-19 transmission to children and youth "less likely."
"The most common source of COVID-19 infections for children and youth are household members," writes Dr. Etches.
Etches writes that daily screening for COVID-19 symptoms, physical distancing, limiting the number of close contacts we have, wearing a mask when indoors and getting vaccinated when eligible "continue to be very important."
Etches offers tips to limit close contacts during the fall, especially for unvaccinated children and youth:
- Limiting the number of extra-curricular activities where there are different groups in close contact
- Choosing outdoor activities as much as possible
- Avoiding prolonged and unmasked indoor exposures such as sleepovers
- Keeping social activities outside of school to smaller groups to make follow-up easier if there is a COVID-19 exposure
As of Friday, there are COVID-19 outbreaks at five elementary and two secondary schools in Ottawa.
Etches urges parents to follow the Ottawa Public Health online screening tool for daily screening.
You can read the full letter to parents and guardians from Dr. Etches on the Ottawa Public Health website.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
A newspaper says video of Prince William and Kate should halt royal rumour mill. That's a tall order
Prince William and his wife Catherine have been filmed at a farm shop near their Windsor home, The Sun newspaper reported -- the first footage of Kate since she had abdominal surgery for an unspecified condition two months ago.
'You ask for your money, they disappear': Ontario man loses $17K to AI crypto scam
A Toronto man is spreading the word of a cryptocurrency scam that lures victims using AI-generated news sites after he lost $17,000 in investments.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
High thoughts: The habits of Canadian cannabis users are revealed in a new StatCan report
Statistics Canada has conducted a series of surveys to measure the impacts of legalized cannabis since the Cannabis Act took effect in 2018. The latest one, the 2023 National Cannabis Survey, sheds light on users' preferences and habits last year.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Trump says Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and their religion
Former U.S. president Donald Trump on Monday charged that Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and hate 'their religion,' igniting a firestorm of criticism from the White House and Jewish leaders.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Freddie Mercury's home is on the market for first time since 1980 minus his 'exquisite clutter'
Freddie Mercury's sanctuary in London, where he lived the last decade of his life, is on sale for the first time in nearly half a century -- minus his "exquisite clutter."
'The lost season': Winter comes to a close as Canada's warmest on record
The warmest winter on record could have far-reaching effects on everything from wildfire season to erosion, climatologists say, while offering a preview of what the season could resemble in the not-so-distant future unless steps are taken to cut greenhouse gas emissions.