COVID has brought many health issues to the forefront. To respond to it, school boards and Alberta Health Services must take action to keep students and staff safe. I believe the Alberta Health Services should test, trace, and isolate.

AHS must test who is positive, and trace their contacts, and they must isolate if they test positive. Additionally, parents should be informed if a student in their child's class tests positive.

 

10 Key Steps to Deal with COVID

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1. Schools must be given rapid testing.

2. Every K-6 classroom needs a HEPA filtration unit.

3. All K-6 students should be provided a KN-95 mask.

4. All staff should receive PPE.

5. Every classroom should receive a CO2 monitor to test for air quality.

6. Since schools are community hubs, they make sense to be offered for vaccinating the public. Mobile clinics should be circulating through the parking lots of public schools to improve access for those that still haven't gotten a second dose of vaccine, or even a first.

7. Reducing large class sizes will reduce the number of students exposed and minimize the number of families and vulnerable people exposed.

8. Funding commitments are urgently needed to replace aging ventilation systems in our schools and to fix our schools.

9. Curricular gaps for when students return after being away from school for many months.

10. More mental health supports for students and staff.