Covid-19 spreading fast in schools, says PHIs union

By Rathindra Kuruwita

The spread of COVID-19 among children had increased after the reopening of schools, the Public Health Inspectors (PHI) Union President Upul Rohana said yesterday.

Rohana said that a number of schoolchildren and teachers had tested positive for Covid-19. Most of the cases were detected in schools in the Southern, Western and Central Provinces, he said.

However, none of the children infected had serious complications.

“There are many asymptomatic COVID-19 cases. Since most adults have been jabbed, they do not develop Covid-19 symptoms.  Thus, they can transmite the disease to their children. Given that the immunity of children, in most cases, is high, they too show no symptoms. When we detect a case, many children have already contracted the disease,” he said.

Rohana said that many schoolchildren ate and played together, and, therefore, it was difficult to control the pandemic in schools.”

Parents and teachers needed to remind children frequently of the importance of wearing masks, washing hands, maintaining physical distance and following good respiratory hygiene, he said.

On Wednesday Deputy Director General of Health Services Dr. Hemantha Herath told the media that a number of students and teachers in various parts of the country had tested COVID-19 positive and schools would have to be closed if the trend continued.

Dr. Herath added that if the number of COVID cases increased, travel restrictions would also have to be imposed again. The number of daily COVID detections had now crossed the 700 mark, he said.

Meanwhile, Dr. Deepal Perera Consultant Paediatrician Lady Ridgeway Hospital for children also said that there was a spike in COVID cases among children. Given that most children had not been vaccinated, they had become more vulnerable to infection, he said.

“Most adults have now been vaccinated. So, now it’s the children who are most vulnerable to infection. We must all follow COVID guidelines,” he said.