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Prepare for up to four weeks of no school: Etches

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Ottawa’s top doctor says parents, students and teachers should prepare for up to four weeks of online learning as Ontario closes its schools.

“Practically speaking, we probably need to prepare for and be psychologically ready for two to four weeks of no school in-person,” medical officer of health Dr. Vera Etches told Newstalk 580 CFRA’s Kristy Cameron on Monday.

“If the hospitalizations are going to keep going up towards the end of the month, it may be hard to return.”

Etches spoke after Premier Doug Ford announced Monday that schools will be closed to in-person learning until Jan. 17.

The province had said last week that in-person schooling would return on Wednesday.

Etches said although she hopes schools will be able to open sooner, families may want to plan for up to four weeks of remote learning if they can.

“Realistically I think it may help people, if they’re trying to put plans in place to cope with the situation, to be able to prepare for that two to four weeks,” Etches said.

“I know sometimes families can only go day by day. We understand that’s really hard. But also trying to put in something that will be support for the longer run could be beneficial.”

Etches said Sunday she supports keeping schools open. On Monday, she stopped short of saying the province is making a mistake by closing them.

"My statement yesterday was about my assessment professionally," she told CTV News at 6. "The harms when we close school are significant, and that the risk of transmission in schools, our experience and the data, shows that it is usually less transmission in schools than in the community settings.

“So on balance my recommendation was to keep them open, and I will continue to advocate for them to open as soon as possible."

She said the province is taking other factors into consideration, such as having enough teachers to operate the schools.

“I think this was a tough decision, there’s no question,” she said. “What we need to focus on now is how we support families that are going to find this hard.”

Etches said OPH has online resources to support children and youth mental health, and will work with schools to identify families that need more support.

The health unit also offers resources for employers to help support employees’ mental health.

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