Parents from more than 100 public, Catholic, and private schools in Newmarket and throughout York Region are urging local education officials to put in place measures to help contain the spread of a respiratory illness caused by the novel (new) coronavirus, known as the Wuhan novel coronavirus, so-called because of the city in China where it is thought the virus originated.
Coronaviruses belong to a family of viruses known to cause illness ranging from the simple common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), according to the York Region public health unit.
Symptoms vary based on the type of coronavirus, but can often include fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat and headache. York public health says authorities are currently reporting that the most common symptoms of the Wuhan coronavirus include fever, new or worsening cough or shortness of breath.
There are 19 cases of Wuhan coronavirus currently under investigation in Ontario, one confirmed case and a second presumptive case in Toronto. One confirmed case of the virus involves a husband who tested positive after returning to Toronto from travel to Wuhan, China, and now his wife is considered to be a presumed positive case, said Ontario’s chief medical officer of health, Dr. David Williams.
The man is in hospital and the woman has been in self-isolation, and the risk to Ontarians remains low, Williams said.
There were no confirmed or presumptive cases of the coronavirus in York Region at the time of publication. However, health agencies in Canada, the United States, China, France, Japan, and other countries are closely monitoring the rapidly evolving outbreak of the virus.
The online parent petition started by Erjun Li is rapidly gaining support and has so far received 8,342 signatures and fetched more than 858 comments.
The local parents are asking schools to implement the following:
- That school boards ask students and their families who travelled back from China to report to the school and classroom teacher. The school should keep track of the students who recently travelled to any city in China, not just Wuhan, where it is believed the virus first appeared. Other parents of the class should have the right to know whether there are students in the class that came back from China recently, and have the right to decide whether to keep their kids at home.
- That the school boards send out a communication to all parents requesting that students or their families who have recently returned from China stay at home and keep isolated for a minimum of 17 days for the purpose of self-quarantine.
- That the school boards allow students to wear safety equipment, including respirator masks, during school.
- And that for the safety of children and teachers, the school and classroom teachers should advise students to strictly follow safety guidelines to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus at school. The school should advise staff to do so, as well.
A parent who identified herself in the comments section of the petition as Anita F., said parents are “very concerned because the board is not taking aggressive measures to handle (the situation)”.
“Sending generic emails to parents will not ease our stress,” she said. “Families that have travelled to that region or have family visiting should be asked to bring a letter from the hospital stating they are in the clear. Sending children to school after a vacation to that region is unfair to others.”
York Region District School Board spokesperson Licinio Miguelo said the board follows all the advice of York Region’s public health department, and last week sent home information to parents sourced from York’s public health website.
“At this time, they (public health) have not advised schools to take additional action beyond what we normally do during this flu season,” Miguelo said.
In a statement to NewmarketToday, the York Catholic District School Board said they are working closely with York Region public health and Ontario's Health Ministry to monitor the situation.
"We have been advised that the risk to residents remains low and there are no additional actions that need to be taken by schools at this time. We will continue to take our direction from York Region public health and the Ontario Ministry of Health and will respond as needed," that statement said.
According to the U.S.-based Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it was thought many of the patients in the early December 2019 outbreak in Wuhan, China reportedly had some connection to a large seafood and animal market, suggesting animal-to-person spread.
But a growing number of patients reportedly have not had exposure to animal markets, indicating person-to-person spread is occurring, the centre stated.
“It’s unclear how easily or sustainably this virus is spreading between people,” CDC officials said.
As of Jan. 26, the new coronavirus has reportedly infected at least 2,463 people and caused at least 80 deaths, and those numbers are certain to mushroom, said Annie Sparrow, an assistant professor of population health science and policy at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, in a tentative clinical profile published at the website Foreign Policy on Jan. 26.
Public education is the best way to avoid infection, such as avoiding physical contact with people known to be infected, and to minimize spread from unidentified infections, wearing masks and hand hygiene, Sparrow said.
“Like influenza, this coronavirus spreads through both direct and indirect contact. Direct contact occurs through the physical transfer of the microorganism among friends and family through close contact with oral secretions,” said Sparrow. “Indirect contact results when an infected person coughs or sneezes, spreading coronavirus droplets on nearby surfaces, including knobs, bed rails, and smartphones.”
Newmarket Mayor John Taylor said there are professional medical and public health experts at the regional, provincial and federal level who have significant knowledge and understanding related to public health.
“I believe we should be guided by these professionals and the decisions they are making,” he said.
Ontario has launched a dedicated Wuhan novel coronavirus webpage that will be updated every weekday at 10:30 a.m. with information on the status of cases in the province, as well as how people can protect themselves and what to do if they suspect they may be at risk.
Ontario continues to work directly with the Public Health Agency of Canada and local public health units to monitor the situation closely and has strengthened protocols for identification and control, government officials say.
“We want to assure students, parents and school communities that officials at the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education are working together in close cooperation with our partners in both the education and health care sectors to ensure the continued safety and well-being of students and staff," said a Jan. 27 joint government statement.
Newmarket’s Southlake Regional Health Centre has also stepped up screening protocols for the emerging virus, including screening patients for travel history and signs and symptoms of communicable illness.
Patients with a travel history to Wuhan, China, trigger additional screening at admissions, and anyone with signs and symptoms of acute respiratory illness are placed on respiratory/contact precautions.
Q & A about the Wuhan novel coronavirus
NewmarketToday asked Dr. Fareen Karachiwalla, York Region’s Associate Medical Officer of Health, some key questions about the new coronavirus.
Here are the answers:
Q: What is the Wuhan novel coronavirus, its incubation period, and how does it behave?
A: Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses known to cause illness ranging from the simple common cold to more severe diseases. Common symptoms of coronaviruses vary based on the type of coronavirus, but can often include cold and flu like symptoms including fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat and headache.
Health authorities are currently reporting that the most common symptoms of the novel coronavirus include fever, new or worsening cough or shortness of breath.
As the novel coronavirus is a new disease, much about it is still unknown. We know there is evidence of person-to-person transmission, but at this time, it’s unclear how easily this virus is spreading between people.
Current evidence suggests that symptoms may appear as soon as two days or as long as 14 days after exposure. This is based on what has been seen previously as the incubation period of MERS viruses and SARS, both of which were coronaviruses.
Q: Parents from more than 100 schools are urging the school boards to take extra steps to stop the potential spread of the virus. Is this necessary at this point?
A: Schools, workplaces or other organizations should do what they usually do this time of year to protect against cold and flu.
No special or different measures are required or recommended at this time. The risk of acquiring the virus is low for York Region residents. We encourage schools, daycares, and other workplaces and organizations to ensure they are encouraging proper handwashing and respiratory etiquette (e.g. coughing in your sleeve), and engaging in regular environmental cleaning.
Q: How can resident’s best protect themselves and their family’s health?
A: All York Region residents can take the following steps to protect themselves, not only from new and emerging diseases, but also from the common cold and the flu, which are circulating at this time of year:
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands.
- Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly, including between your fingers, under your fingernails and your wrists; if soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Cover your cough or sneeze using a tissue or into your elbow or sleeve, being sure to cover your mouth; put used tissue in the garbage and wash your hands after or use alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- If you are sick, stay home from work or school until your symptoms resolve.
- Avoid close contact with anyone showing symptoms of respiratory illness such as coughing and sneezing.
- Increase cleaning and disinfection frequency of high-touch surfaces such as toilets, sink tap handles, doorknobs, countertops, light switches and other shared items using regular household cleaners.
- Avoid sharing personal items that come into contact with saliva such as toothbrushes, eating utensils drinks/water bottles and towels.
Q: What actions are the York Region public health unit taking regarding the rapidly evolving situation?
A: York Region public health is closely monitoring this novel coronavirus outbreak originating in Central China. We are working closely with Ontario’s Ministry of Health and receive regular updates from the Ministry as the situation evolves.
York Region Public Health is working closely with our hospitals and community health care providers to keep them informed on the evolving situation.
Physicians, hospitals and other health care facilities in York Region are required to report a suspected or confirmed case of novel coronavirus to public health immediately and to take action to follow-up with close contacts to prevent and control further transmission.
You can visit york.ca/coronavirus for updates from York Region public health as the situation continues to evolve.
