Back to School

Doctors Discuss Safety, Logistics of Education During Pandemic

- TERESA SCHIFFER

IIT’S BACK-TO-SCHOOL SEASON AGAIN – but this time there’s a twist. COVID-19 infection rates and deaths are still on the rise in the U.S., meaning students, educators, and parents must learn to navigate education during an ongoing public health crisis. This is not the first major pandemic the U.S. has ever experienced, but it is the first to occur within our lifetimes. Because authorities have not waived the obligation for children in Florida ages 6 to 16 to attend some form of schooling despite the public health risks associated with gathering in groups, this school year is going to be quite the novel experience.

Dr. Michael Keating, Chief Medical Officer at AdventHealth for Children, and Dr. Angela Falls, Medical Director of the Pediatric Weight and Wellness Program at AdventHealth for Children, addressed some of the concerns of parents and educators on a recent live stream of the AdventHealth Morning Briefing coronavirus update.

Keating summarized the primary concern surrounding the reopening of schools. “Fortunately, kids, defined as those being 18 years and younger, do not typically get as sick as adults do, which is a blessing,” he says.

“But the implications of having them as a potential reservoir for viruses is a very real one because it places not only their families potentially at risk, but the staff in the schools at risk, and the rest of the population and their friends at risk.”