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home / 世界杯决赛2022

'i feel unsafe': b.c. kids exposed to covid-19 can go to daycare if symptom-free

parents, daycare workers say they are upset about the change and do not feel safe

by sarah grochowski

jan 21 2022
read time 4 minute read
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natasha malone, 32, who runs private daycare parkridge early learning centre out of her home in prince george. courtesy natasha malone / png
parents and child-care providers are questioning the province’s decision to remove the quarantine requirements for young children who come into close contact with covid-19 cases.
“i’m angry,” said natasha malone, who runs a private daycare, parkridge early learning centre, at her home in prince george.
“i first learned of the news through my television screen, along with the rest of the province, and not before,” the 32-year-old said.
the provincial health officer announced the change tuesday, attributing it to the omicron variant, which she said is causing milder and shorter illnesses among b.c.’s infected.
“you don’t need to isolate if you’ve been in contact and you’re a healthy child,” dr. bonnie henry said at a briefing about daycare facilities, which are deemed by the province an essential service.

following henry’s announcement, the b.c. centre for disease control released new guidelines for child-care spaces late wednesday, including that children who were in contact with a covid-19 patient are allowed to go to daycare without having to quarantine if they are symptom-free.

“staff or children who are exposed to covid-19 may continue to attend child care, regardless of vaccination status,” the guidelines read.
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previously, a child or staff member exposed to a person who tested positive for covid-19 had to quarantine for 10 days. the province is still requiring school-aged children, some of whom have become eligible for a vaccination against the virus, to quarantine after exposure.
“the change is contradictory,” said malone, who was left immunocompromised after becoming sick with covid-19 in june. “i plan to continue to enforce 10 days of isolation on myself and the children if one of us tests positive for the virus.”
also baffled by the change of the protocol are child-care workers and early childhood educators.
mijung, a child-care worker who asked not to be identified with her surname, says the end of quarantine periods is putting both her and her family at risk.
“i feel unsafe,” said the 36-year-old who works at a daycare in burnaby.
she went into work monday to discover a young child red in the face with a fever. later in the day, the child tested positive for covid-19.
“we immediately sent every other child home to isolate,” said mijung.
but, by wednesday, the protocol changes saw children pour back into the daycare she’s worked at for several years.
“there were fewer children this time, seven or eight,” she said. some parents decided to keep their children at home.
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“i just wish b.c. would change the isolation period to at least five days to make sure children aren’t going to develop covid-19. even with the two masks that i wear now, i’m being sneezed on every day by kids.”
parents are also upset by the change.
port coquitlam’s travis poehlke, who relies on daycare for his year-old son, says he feels betrayed and abandoned by the province.
“my family has literally spent my son’s entire life trying to keep him safe from covid-19. we’ve followed every rule and guideline, kept mostly to ourselves, avoided anywhere crowded all in an effort to protect him until a vaccine was available for him,” said the 34-year-old.
“the new guidelines have backed my family into a corner. do we send our son to daycare monday knowing that he almost certainly will be infected before he can be vaccinated, or do we find some way to survive in one of the most expensive cities in canada?”
the province said it plans an online meeting with henry and other health professionals on jan. 26 to answer the questions child-care providers and parents have about the change.
“we’ve had to change to deal with the challenging and different situation that omicron is presenting us,” henry said tuesday.

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“through the last two years, child-care workers have done an amazing job at really managing to care for children safely, especially the youngest children who can’t be immunized and still can’t and who can’t necessarily wear masks very effectively.”

five things parents should know about daycare and covid guidelines:

• children younger than five are exempt from province mask-wearing requirements. child-care providers are still encouraged to support mask use by children through positive approaches, not punitive or enforcement activities that exclude students.
• infants under two years of age should not wear masks as it may make it difficult for them to breathe and may become a choking hazard.
• child-care administrators are to ensure parents and caregivers are aware that their children should not go to daycare if they are sick or are required to self-quarantine (this can take form in a daily health check of symptoms).
• children who become sick are to go home as soon as possible. daycares are asked to designate a separate space, two metres away from others, for the child to wait in case they cannot be picked up immediately.
• adults in child care settings are required to wear a mask at all times while indoors, with few exceptions.

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sgrochowski@postmedia.com

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