Schools not zero risk but ‘opening is better option’ says acting CMO

Dr Ronan Glynn, Acting Chief Medical Officer, Department of Health, , Professor Philip Nolan, Chair of NPHET Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group and Dr. Colm Henry, Chief Clinical Officer, HSE pictured this evening (Thursday 27th August) at a Covid -19 update press conference at the Department of Health.....Picture: Colin Keegan, Collins Dublin

Schools are not a zero-risk option, the acting chief medical officer has told parents and teachers, but their reopening has been carefully weighed against "the very real harm" that can be caused by sustained closures.

As the majority of schools at both primary and post-primary level return this week after a break of almost six months, Dr Ronan Glynn penned an open letter to parents and guardians, and teachers and school staff, in which he reassured them that while cases of the coronavirus will be detected in the coming weeks in educational settings, evidence indicates that for the overwhelming majority, symptoms will be mild. 

Dr Glynn wrote that concerns over the return of schooling is "natural" but stressed that the decision to reopen was "not taken lightly" and based on a number of factors, including guidance from the World Health Organization and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control as well as evidence from other countries.

"International evidence shows us that child-to-child and child-to-adult transmission of Covid-19 in schools is uncommon," Dr Glynn said.

The open letter comes as the latest figures issued on Sunday showed no new deaths as a result of Covid-19, and 42 new confirmed cases of the virus.

It brings to 28,760 the total number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Ireland since the virus was first detected. On Saturday, the Health Protection Surveillance Centre said it had been notified of 142 confirmed cases. Of the 42 cases announced on Sunday, 24 were in Dublin, six in Limerick, and the remaining 12 located in counties Carlow, Clare, Galway, Kildare, Longford, Offaly, and Sligo.

Meanwhile, a new survey has found that more than half of people working from home estimate they are sitting down for an average of two hours and 40 minutes longer per day.

The survey found that more than half of all workers in Ireland have been able to work from home since coronavirus restrictions began, with 53% of them sitting down for longer than when in the office or their usual place of work.

And one in four of those who are sitting for longer are remaining sedentary for at least three hours more than previously, the research found.

The Irish Heart Foundation, which commissioned the survey, has warned of the dangers of sitting down for long periods, and has called for workers to move for a minute each hour during the working day.

Tara Curran, physical activity co-ordinator with the Irish Heart Foundation, said that sitting at work all day can increase a person's risk of heart disease and stroke.

"As working from home and video meetings become the norm, workers are increasingly tied to their laptops for hour after hour," she said.