Renfrew County parents uncomfortable sending kids back to school on Monday
With children across Ontario set to return to in-class learning on Monday, some parents in the Ottawa Valley feel it is still not safe enough.
Arnprior mother Sophie Smith-Dore says she will be keeping her kids home come Monday.
Her 15-year-old son in Grade 10 has received two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine, and her 5-year-old daughter has received her first dose. However, with booster shots still not available to youth in Canada, Smith-Dore is not willing to take the risk with omicron running rampant.
"How am I supposed to send my teenager to school in sardine cans of classrooms," the mother of two tells CTV News Ottawa. "With possibly HEPA filtered rooms and possibly properly masked people."
Smith-Dore was hoping booster shots for youth would be prioritized ahead of the return to in-person learning, but was rejected when she and her son attended a vaccine clinic for his third dose.
"I am going to have to have the conversation with my teenager that I can't let them go back to school because I'm afraid that they're going to get sick, and then their sister sick."
Meantime, the region's top doctor is confident ahead of the return to school.
Renfrew County's acting medial officer of health says if he had an 8-year-old, he would be sending them to school come Monday.
"We want these kids to go back, they're suffering immensely, their education has stalled," Dr. Robert Cushman says. "Their social lives are pretty much restricted to screen time; their mental health has been effected, so this is tough."
However, Cushman is also calling on parents to do more to help the region's children. He wants attendance numbers at youth vaccination clinics to jump.
"We're sending them back at the height of Omicron and the vaccination rates in the 5 to 11 year-old aged group are only 40 percent; I don't understand frankly," says Cushman. "If you want your kid back at school, get your kid vaccinated."
Approximately 80 percent of those aged 12 to 17 in Renfrew County have been vaccinated, with over 90 percent of the rest of the county having received at least one dose.
The county is also prepared to shorten to the wait times between first and second doses for those 5 to 11 in the wake of Omicron. Currently the recommendation is eight weeks, but the health unit wants to get second doses out as quickly as possible.
"It's the long-term effects that I'm concerned about that I need to keep them protected for," says Smith-Dore.
"And if we lose the school year to keep them protected that's what happens I guess."
"I think in the interim, with two vaccines and ample precautions, in particular minimizing your social group," advises Dr. Cushman, "this can be done."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.