The St. Clair Catholic District School Board and the Lambton-Kent District School Board have both provided details on voluntary asymptomatic COVID-19 testing for students and on the new screening tool.
Lambton-Kent District School Board details
“To continue to support our schools, students, staff and families, in partnership with the Ministry of Education and local Public Health officials, the Lambton Kent District School Board (LKDSB) is facilitating the establishment of voluntary targeted COVID-19 testing opportunities for asymptomatic students and staff,” said John Howitt, director of education, in a letter posted on the school board website.​
“In addition to daily screening, masking and the other health and safety measures, targeted testing of asymptomatic students and staff aims to support the mitigation of the transmission of COVID-19.”
Howitt added: “The voluntary, asymptomatic testing will be conducted by health professionals contracted by the Ministry of Education and coordinated by CLASS, and parent/guardian consent will be required. The LKDSB is in the preliminary planning stages in support of the local delivery of this Ministry initiative. Further details regarding the delivery and scheduling of voluntary asymptomatic testing for students will be provided as soon as plans are finalized.”
Howitt said throughout the school year, students, staff and families are encouraged to remain vigilant and follow the health and safety protocols in place to mitigate the transmission of COVID-19, including completing the daily school screening assessment tool.
“As part of the provincial government’s efforts to strengthen health and safety measures and update guidance to reflect provincial trends and transmission risks, the government has made changes to the COVID-19 school and child care screening criteria,” Howitt said.
“Please be sure to complete and follow the directions of the school screening assessment tool daily. As a reminder, secondary students are required to provide daily confirmation that they have completed the school screening assessment tool.”
Information about COVID-19 to support parents/guardians is available on the Chatham-Kent Public Health and Lambton Public Health websites.
Additional information and resources for parents/guardians are available on the LKDSB website, Howitt added.
“Thank you for your ongoing support of the health and safety measures in place to continue a safe operation of schools,” he said.
St. Clair Catholic District School Board details
In its on-going commitment to keep schools open and safe, the Ontario government has enhanced a number of health and safety measures, said Deb Crawford, director of education for the St. Clair Catholic District School Board, in a letter posted on their school board website.
They include:
– Changes to the provincial school and child care screening tool
– New isolation requirements for household members
– Asymptomatic voluntary COVID testing in schools
– Provincial School and Child Care Screening Tool
“All students, children and staff are required to screen for symptoms of illness every day before coming to school or child care,” Crawford said.
A link to the daily screening tool can be found on the main page of the Board website at www.st-clair.net or at the following link: https://covid-19.ontario.ca/school-screening/
Crawford said the daily screening tool has been updated to include new provincial direction that staff, students and children with any new or worsening symptom of COVID-19, as indicated in the screening tool, even those with only one symptom, must stay home until:
– They receive a negative COVID-19 test result.
– They receive an alternative diagnosis by a health care professional, or
– It has been 10 days since their symptom onset and they are feeling better.
“As a reminder, secondary school students and all staff are now required to provide daily confirmation of having self-screened prior to or upon their arrival at their school or work location,” Crawford said.
“Any individual who does not pass this on-site screening procedure will be asked to return home and self-isolate until they meet the criteria for return.”
Isolation requirements for household contacts of symptomatic individuals
“Parents/guardians should follow the advice of the daily provincial screening tool, which has been updated to include direction regarding isolation of household contacts for symptomatic individuals,” Crawford said.
“Any questions regarding isolation of persons living in the same household as symptomatic individuals should be directed to public health.”
Asymptomatic voluntary COVID testing in schools
“In a further effort to combat the spread of COVID-19 in our communities, the Ontario Ministry of Education has directed that voluntary asymptomatic testing of students will be conducted in all elementary and secondary schools in the province, including schools of the St. Clair Catholic District School Board,” Crawford said.
“At St. Clair Catholic, this initiative will be led by CLASS, a joint consortium with the Lambton Kent District School Board, which also manages transportation, child care and community use of schools. CLASS will be working with third party vendors to conduct the testing, which will take place in schools after hours. Only asymptomatic students (students with no COVID symptoms) will be tested.”
Crawford added: “In addition, the tests are voluntary and only students whose parents/guardians have signed consent (or consenting students 18 years of age or older) will be tested. In order to protect privacy, test results will only be shared with parents/guardians/students and local public health authorities. Asymptomatic school staff who wish to be tested may also participate.”
Crawford said Lambton and Chatham-Kent Public Health will advise which school communities they believe should be prioritized for testing.
“The government has set a goal of five percent of elementary and secondary schools per week for testing. St. Clair Catholic and CLASS are currently awaiting further information regarding which vendors will be conducting the tests.”
More information regarding this initiative will be shared as it becomes available, Crawford said.
The St. Clair Catholic District School Board continues to follow direction from the Ontario government, Ontario Public Health and the Medical Officers of Health for the Chatham-Kent and Lambton public health units, Crawford said.
“We thank you in advance for following these important new health and safety measures, as together we work to keep our schools, our students and our staff safe and healthy” she added.
