>> So, I will get us started.
Hello, my name is Diane Hall,
and I would like to welcome you
to today's CDC Partner Update Call on COVID-19.
This call serves as a way for the CDC
to share weekly updates on COVID-19
and our latest resources and guidance documents,
especially for the private
sector and other partners.
Today's call will focus on CDC's
strategies to protect K-12 school staff.
First, we will hear from our COVID-19 response
acting Chief Medical Officer about where we are
with the response and what everyone should
know about protecting themselves and others.
Then we would hear from two members from the
National Institute for Occupational Safety
and Health, NIOSH, which is one of
the institutes, or centers, at CDC,
and the two members from NIOSH were pivotal
in developing these strategies to protect K
to 12 school staff, and they've joined us
today to provide an overview of the resource.
Afterwards, our speakers will
take questions from the audience.
Please note this call is intended primarily
for CDC partners directly
involved in the COVID-19 response.
It is not intended for media.
Should media who are listening have questions,
we invite you to reach out to media@CDC.gov.
This call will be recorded, and we will be
posting it later on CDC's COVID-19 website,
as well as on our YouTube channel.
All of our past partner calls
can be found there.
So please take some time to review
and share those prior recordings.
If this is your first webinar with us, welcome.
These weekly calls occur every Monday
at 3 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
We will be posting a link in the chat box, so
you know where to subscribe to the mailing list
to receive future updates and
invitations to these calls.
Please note that there are multiple
lists that CDC have that we use.
So, if you've missed an invitation over the
last few weeks, please do follow that link
in the chat box to make sure you're
invited to the partners' call, the list.
Please note that we will not
be holding a partner call
on September 7th, in observance of Labor Day.
The COVID-19 weekly partner updates will
resume the following week on September 14th.
I would also like to take this
opportunity to remind all participants
that the CDC website has our latest information,
guidance, and communication resources.
There are over 2,000 documents providing
information and guidance for individuals,
businesses, and the public on our website.
In addition to the tools we will
highlight today, some resources posted
within the last week include
updates to two pages we think many
on this call will find helpful, namely, our
page on preparing K to 12 school administrators
for a safe return to school in fall 2020,
and our page on operational
considerations for schools.
We've provided updates to our
toolkit for peoples age 15 to 21,
and I'd also like to highlight CDC's
COVID-19 responder stories page.
CDC has thousands of responders supporting
the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic,
and this page shares some of the
unique stories from our colleagues.
Thanks to those of you who
sent questions in advance.
We've already teed up a few of those to
be asked during our Q&A portion today.
We will also be keeping an eye on the Q&A box.
So, please feel welcome to
submit questions there, as well.
We will not be monitoring the chat box.
So, please use the Q&A box
to submit your questions.
It's located at the bottom panel
of the Zoom window on your screen.
I'm pleased today to be joined by three
CDC experts on the COVID-19 response,
Dr. Cliff McDonald, who is our acting
Chief Medical Officer for the response,
and Dr. Rebecca Guerin and Mr. Alberto
Garcia, both from the National Institute
of Occupational Safety and Health, or NIOSH.
Please note that we will not
be using a lot of slides today.
We just have a couple.
So, please do not be alarmed if you
do not see the slides advancing.
If you experience technical
difficulties or otherwise would
like to review today's call later, again, we
are recording it, and we will be posting it
on our webpage, as well as
our CDC YouTube channel.
Now let's turn to Dr. McDonald for some updates.
Dr. McDonald?
>> Thank you, Dr. Hall, and welcome
to everyone joining us today.
My name is Dr. Cliff McDonald, and as
mentioned, I'm the acting Chief Medical Officer
for CDC's COVID-19 response,
filling in for Dr. Brooks.
Today, I'd like to provide just a brief
update on the COVID response at CDC and some
of the latest scientific
developments and guidance.
Globally, there have been over 25 million cases
and over 843,000 deaths, as of August 31st.
Here in the US, there have been over 5.9 million
confirmed and probable cases reported to CDC,
and tragically, over 182,000 deaths,
which represent nearly 25% of all cases
and deaths reported worldwide since
the beginning of the pandemic,
which is also more cases and deaths
than contributed by any other country.
Two-hundred and ninety-one thousand
of these cases have been
identified in the last seven days.
Recent data suggests that, as a nation, we
are in a decline in the number of daily cases.
Over 3/4 of states, or about 3/4 of
states, have declining or plateaued cases.
However, the number of daily cases
across the nation still remains
approximately twice what it was,
what we were seeing, back in mid-to-late June.
Of course, as changes in deaths typically
lag behind changes in diagnosed cases,
the declines in deaths we're seeing
are less than the declines in cases.
The degree of reductions in this current phase
of the pandemic will continue to vary by state.
The daily numbers of both cases
and deaths remain quite high,
and achieving control nationally will continue
to depend on a strong public health response,
including increased access to testing, with
shorter turnaround times of results who need it
and widespread adoption of non-pharmaceutical
interventions, such as social distancing,
hand hygiene, masking in public, especially
when you can't stay 6 feet apart from others,
covering coughs and sneezes,
and avoiding touching your face.
Routine disinfection of high-touch surfaces,
increasing ventilation, and of course,
monitoring yourself and others for illness.
We encourage you to visit CDC's COVID view
for a weekly summary and interpretation
of key indicators that have been adapted
to track the COVID-19 pandemic
in the United States.
Now I want to turn to a few recent MMWRs.
As you know, scientists around the country
and the world are working diligently
to better understand how COVID-19
illness affects patients and communities.
So, I want to share some of what we've
learned in the last two weeks from two reports
that CDC has published in the
morbidity/mortality weekly report.
First, I'd like to highlight findings from
an August 26th report titled "Preventing
and Mitigating SARS CO-V-2
Transmission for Overnight Camps,
Maine, June through August 2020."
This MMWR highlights the thoughtful and
prudent public health practices used
by four overnight summer camps in Maine
and reinforces how powerful everyday
preventative actions are in reducing
and keeping COVID-19 transmission low.
During the 2020 summer camp season, four
overnight camps in Maine with 1,022 attendees
from 41 states and international locations
implemented a multilayered prevention
and mitigation strategy that
was successful in identifying
and isolating seven asymptomatic COVID-19
cases, quarantining their cohorts,
and preventing secondary transmission.
The nonpharmaceutical interventions
included pre-arrival quarantine,
pre- and post-arrival testing and symptom
screening, cohorting, use of masks,
physical distancing, enhanced hygiene measures,
cleaning and disinfection, and
maximal outdoor programming.
Although no single intervention
alone is sufficient
to prevent all SARS CO-V-2 transmission,
the diligent use of multiple nonpharmaceutical
interventions allowed these camps
to prevent transmission and quickly
identified campers or staff members
with SARS CO-V-2 infection to
successfully mitigate spread.
The lessons learned from such
successful interventions to prevent
and mitigate SARS CO-V-2 transmission in
overnight camps can inform implementation
of COVID-19 mitigation strategies
in similar congregant settings,
such as day camps and schools.
Second, I'd like to share the findings from
another report posted on August 28th titled
"Limited Secondary Transmission of SARS
CO-V-2 in Childcare Programs, Rhode Island,
June 1st through July 31st, 2020."
As of July 31st, 75% of Rhode Island's
childcare programs were approved to reopen
with capacity for nearly 19,000 children.
Between June 1st and July 31st, the Rhode Island
Department of Health conducted investigations
of any reported COVID-19 case and a child
or adult, including staff members, parents,
or guardians present at a childcare program.
Identification of 101 possible
childcare-associated cases,
among which were 52 confirmed or probable
cases, resulted in closures of 89 classes
and quarantine of 687 children and
166 staff members, including contacts.
However, possible secondary transmission was
identified in only four of the 666 programs
that had been allowed to reopen,
all in the last two weeks of July,
when community transmission
in Rhode Island had increased.
The apparent absence of secondary transmission
within the other 662 childcare
programs was likely the result
of Rhode Island's response efforts to contain
transmission and childcare programs' adherence
to Rhode Island Department
of Health requirements.
In particular, setting maximum class
sizes and use of facemasks for adults.
Adherence to current CDC recommendations
remains critical to reducing transmission
in child care settings, including
wearing of masks,
limiting mixing between established
student-teacher groups, staying home when ill,
and cleaning and disinfecting
frequently-touched surfaces.
Before we move to today's speakers,
I'd like to remind everyone
that the 2020-2021 flu season is coming up.
With rare exceptions, the CDC recommends annual
flu vaccination for everyone six months of age
or older, especially during COVID-19.
I encourage you all to get your yearly flu
shot and encourage all partners on this call
to support flu vaccination
efforts within your organizations.
September and October are great
times to get the flu vaccine.
With that, it is now my pleasure to hand you
over to my colleagues, Dr. Rebecca Guerin
and Mr. Alberto Garcia, to share
information about CDC's strategies
for protecting K-12 school staff.
>> Thank you, Dr. McDonald.
Good afternoon.
I'm Dr. Rebecca Guerin.
I'm a research social scientist and
Deputy Branch Chief of the Social Science
and Translation Research Branch within the
Division of Science Integration at NIOSH CDC.
Thank you all for joining us today.
I will be discussing CDC's strategies
for protecting K-12 school staff alongside my
colleague, Alberto Garcia, who was my copilot
in developing these strategies,
together with a group
of subject matter experts
from across the agency.
Alberto, did you have anything
you wanted to add from the top?
>> No, Rebecca, no, thank
you, and hello everyone.
My name is Alberto Garcia, and I'm a
mechanical engineer on the Engineering
and Physical Assets Branch, on the Division
of Field Studies and Engineering at NIOSH,
specially assigned to the COVID-19 response.
Thank you, Rebecca.
>> Thanks, Alberto.
With that, let's go ahead and get started.
So, as a mother of three school-aged
children, ranging from 10 to 16,
I really appreciate the important
role that schools play
in supporting my children's
academic achievement,
but also, their health and well-being.
As a NIOSH researcher who has, for many years,
been conducting school-based interventions
and some of the largest and most
diverse US school districts,
I also appreciate that schools are a unique
and very complex workplace for people
with many different roles from teachers
to school nurses to janitorial staff.
On August 20, CDC released the "Strategies
for Protecting K-12 School Staff
from COVID-19," as Dr. Hall mentioned.
The information on the webpage, which was
developed based on extensive stakeholder input
and expertise from more than a dozen
CDC/NIOSH subject matter experts from fields
such as engineering, epidemiology,
industrial hygiene, occupational medicine,
health communication, behavioral science,
and more, provides an expanded focus
on the health and safety of K-12 school staff.
The information presented on
the new CDC webpage is intended
for K-12 school administrators
preparing for school programs for staff
and students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Administrators oversee the daily
operations of K-12 schools.
This information is also
intended for other groups,
including school district superintendents,
school principals and assistant principals,
who share responsibilities for
safely operating school buildings.
Finally, this information may also
be useful to boards of education,
state and local policymakers, unions and labor
groups, school employees, including teachers,
paraprofessionals, and other
support staff, as well as parents,
families, and students themselves.
These strategies are meant to supplement,
not replace, existing CDC resources
for K-12 schools, which were discussed in depth
of by my CDC colleagues in
this forum on August 17th.
Next slide, please.
You can see from this slide
where our new webpage fits
in with the existing CDC school resources.
Next slide, please.
It is important to note that these strategies
also do not replace any federal, state, local,
territorial, or tribal health and safety laws,
rules and regulations, with
which schools must comply.
These strategies apply whether staff and
students have returned to in person learning,
staff is assigned to work in school
buildings to support virtual learning,
or the school implements hybrid models
that we've been hearing a lot about lately.
These are those combined in person
and virtual instruction models.
Certain aspects of these strategies apply
to non-school buildings operated
by K-12 school systems.
For example, office workers in
district administration buildings.
You can think of the strategies
as having two main parts.
The first contains information
related to protecting K-12 broadly.
The second part provides specific
information pertaining to staff, including,
but not limited to, teachers, paraprofessionals,
janitorial and maintenance staff, office staff,
school nutrition staff, school nurses, bus
drivers and aides, coaching and athletic staff,
and musical and performing arts teachers.
I will talk more about some
of the considerations
for these special groups
later in this presentation.
In terms of the information that applies
broadly across the school worksite,
the "Strategies for Protecting K-12
School Staff" page provides information
about exposure risk among K-12 staff.
This includes information about the
risk of occupational spread of COVID-19,
which depends on several factors.
For teachers and school staff, this risk
is affected by the distance between staff
and others, such as when arriving at
schools, during breaks, and shared spaces,
such as break rooms and shared methods of
transportation between home and school.
The risk can also increase with
extended contact of 15 minutes or greater
with potentially infectious individuals,
as well as with the type of contact.
Staff that are older adults or staff of any age
with certain underlying medical
conditions may also be at higher risk.
Every school should have a plan in place to
protect staff, children, and their families
from COVID-19, and a response plan, if or when,
a student or staff member
tests positive for COVID-19.
Alberto, could you share with us a little
bit more about how to create this plan?
>> Thank you, Rebecca.
Yes, so to start, all schools should
have an emergency operations plan.
Information on developing and implementing
an emergency operations plan can be found
on CDC's page on "Operating
Schools During COVID-19."
The team should be sharing the link on the chat.
All K-12 school workplaces developing plans
to continue operations while COVID-19 outbreaks
occur among teachers, staff, and students
or in surrounding communities should work
directly with appropriate state, tribal, local,
and territorial public health officials and
occupational safety and health professionals,
should also incorporate relevant aspects of
CDC guidance, including, but not limited to,
CDC schools and childcare programs,
to plan, prepare, and respond,
and the interim guidance for
businesses and employers.
This plan should also incorporate
guidance from the Occupational Safety
and Health Administration, OSHA, and other
federal and state regulatory agencies,
as needed, and should also communicate regularly
with families and staff and our partners
about important COVID-19 information.
Schools should also create a hazard
assessment plan, which is an important part
of schools' emergency operations plan.
A hazard assessment plan provides
a framework for conducting initial
and periodic hazard assessments of the school to
identify COVID-19 risk, prevention strategies,
and to identify new or recurrent hazards.
The OSHA website has a resource on how to
develop these plans, and the link is included
on the school staff strategies page.
Creating a successful hazard assessment
plan starts with engaging with staff
across a full range of jobs in the school,
to learn about the specific
hazards for each position.
You may want to create a small team
to assess a group's specific hazards
that would report to a main assessment team.
Employee management representatives should
also be involved in developing, implementing,
and maintaining and evaluating
a health and safety plan.
Occupational health and safety medical
professionals should also be involved,
when possible, and representatives of authorized
unions should also be involved, if applicable.
It is also recommended to regularly ask
for feedback from staff through a variety
of channels like focus groups,
surveys, or virtual meetings.
I also encourage you to refer to local, state,
and professional technical organizations,
that might have relevant guidance.
So, now that we know how to identify
potential COVID-19 hazards in schools,
let's shift gears into our main focus for today,
which is our strategies of protecting K-12 staff
by controlling exposure to COVID-19.
The risk for COVID-19 spread rises with
increased contact and close contact with others.
The more people who teachers and staff interact
with, and the longer those interactions last,
the higher the risk of COVID-19 spread.
Preventing and reducing the spread
of SARS COVID-2, which is the virus
that causes COVID-19, among school staff
will also prevent transmission among students
and the wider community.
Invention prevention recommendation
for staff and students are based on
and approach known as the hierarchy of control.
This approach groups actions
by their effectiveness
in reducing or removing the hazards.
The most effective controls are those
that rely on engineering solution,
followed by administrative controls,
and then, personal protective equipment.
PPE is the least-effective control method
and the most difficult to implement.
In most cases, the preferred approach is
for management of COVID-19 risk to staff
and students in K-12 schools to reduce the
risk of COVID-19 by having teachers, staff,
and students stay home when
sick or if they have been
in close contact with a person with COVID-19.
Staff should also monitor COVID-19
transmission rates in the immediate community
and in the communities in which
students, teachers, and staff live.
Work collaboratively with local
health officials to determine
if temporary school closings are necessary.
To install engineering controls, including
modifying work areas using physical barriers
and incorporating, require
accessibility requirements,
and improving ventilation where feasible.
They should also establish administrative
control and safe work practices for all staff
to follow, which includes appropriate
cleaning and disinfection practices
and appropriate face covering policies.
And they also should provide PPE in accordance
with the school administrative worksite,
after assessment, to protect
staff from hazards not controlled
by engineering or administrative control alone.
An example is school health staff
and janitorial and maintenance staff.
There are a variety of strategies that can be
used to address each of these recommendations
for infection control and infection prevention.
Since our time today is limited, I'll just
skim the surface with a few of these examples.
Going back to the first point, some
suggestions to reduce the risk of COVID-19
in K-12 school worksites include educating and
training staff on at-home symptom screening
such as fever, cough, and sore
throats, and cooperating with federal
and local health officials, including
to facilitate contact tracing
if exposures and infections warrant.
CDC does not recommend a school conducted
universal in-person symptoms screenings.
Instead, consider asking staff to
self-screen before coming to work.
CDC also does not recommend universal
testing of all students and staff,
and schools should collaborate with local
health officials and determine whether
to implement any testing
strategies and how best to do so.
Staff, or students, that are sick
or have close contact with persons
with COVID-19 should be encouraged
to get tested or stay at home.
On-site health services staff, including
school nurses, should follow appropriate CDC
and OSHA guidance for healthcare
and emergency response personnel.
The second point of infection prevention
is implementing and maintaining controls.
These include strategies such as water systems,
modifying layout, physical barriers, and guides.
Increasing ventilation is a critical
prevention strategy, and consider steps
to increase the delivery of clean air
and dilute potential contaminants,
such as increasing outdoor air
ventilation by opening windows or doors
or holding classes outside
if weather conditions allow.
Some options are to increase air filtration,
running the HVAC at the maximum outside air flow
for two hours before and after work
hours, or installing portable HEPA filter,
fan filter units, in high risk
areas, such as the nurse's office.
Consider portable, high-efficiency air HEPA
filter systems to enhance their cleaning,
especially in higher-risk
areas, such as a nurse's office.
Also consider using ultraviolet
germicidal irradiation, UVGI,
as a supplement to help inactivate SARS COVID-2,
the virus, SARS COVID-2, especially if options
for increasing room ventilation are limited.
If applicable to your school situation,
consult with an experienced HVAC professional
when considering changes to
HVAC systems and equipment.
The third point for infection
prevention is administrative controls.
Some important options for
administrative controls are staggering
and alternative scheduling,
closing indoor common spaces,
and implementing cleaning
and disinfection protocols.
K-12 administrators should consider
strategies to reinforce the use of masks,
physical distancing, and cohorting, as well
as instituting flexible leave policies.
K to 12 staff should be trained on
how to reduce the spread of COVID-19
with instructional materials
in accessible formats
and in languages other than English, if needed.
Administrators should also offer options, such
as telework, modified work responsibilities,
or temporary reassignment to staff at
risk for severe illnesses from COVID-19
or with household members at increased risk.
The fourth and final point for infection
prevention is personal protective equipment,
or PPE.
Employers are responsible for
providing a safe and healthy workplace.
When engineering and administrative
controls cannot be implemented
or are not fully protective, employers
are required by OSHA standards
to determine what PPE is required for staff,
according to their specific job duties
and to select and provide the PPE
to staff at no cost, if required.
Employers must also train their staff on hazard
identification and the correct use of PPE.
Note that cloth masks are not PPE,
and in the case of PPE shortages,
administrators should consider
further engineering
and administrative controls
to reduce the need of PPE.
I'll pass it back to Dr. Guerin.
>> Thanks, Alberto.
So, now that we have that context, I wanted
to highlight additional special considerations
for three groups of K-12 school staff
about whom we've received many
questions over the past few weeks.
Again, due to time constraints, I will not
be able to touch on all of the strategies
or all of the occupations covered and encourage
partners to read the strategies website closely.
The first group is school nurses and other
school-based healthcare professionals.
Similar to other school employees, school nurses
and healthcare professionals should be familiar
with the general recommendations
for all school employees.
They should also be familiar with CDC's interim
infection prevention and control recommendations
for healthcare personnel
during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some of the topics that are most relevant to
the school clinic setting include selecting for,
and providing, PPE to school nurses at no
cost, in accordance with OSHA PPE standards
and training these staff
on the proper use of PPE.
Recommended infection prevention
and control practices
for routine healthcare delivery during
the pandemic, which include to screen
and triage everyone entering
a healthcare facility.
So, this includes the nurse's office or
a school-based health center or clinic
for signs and symptoms of COVID-19.
Implement universal source control measures.
Limit occupancy and health offices and
nurses' offices and isolation rooms.
Practice hand hygiene, and ensure enhanced
ventilation and healthcare delivery spaces
in schools, such as Alberto mentioned,
or relocate them into workspaces
with enhanced ventilation.
The second group I wanted to mention
today is performing arts teachers,
specifically band, music, choir.
Note that singing or playing wind and brass
instruments can generate respiratory droplets
and aerosols that may contain the
COVID-19 virus if a person is infected.
In addition to general considerations, such
as physical distancing, increased ventilation,
and implementing physical barriers between
students, there are additional options
for school administrators to consider.
These include the use of bell covers
for the openings of brass instruments
and specially designed bags with hand
openings for woodwind instruments,
to minimize the generation
of droplets and aerosols.
Limiting the exchange or sharing
of any instruments, parts,
music sheets, or any other items.
Using disposable, absorbent pads or
other receptacles, where possible,
to catch the contents of split valves and
discarding and cleaning properly after use.
Modifying or adjusting seating arrangements
during music classes to allow for a minimum
of 6 feet between students and music teachers.
This may reduce the number of students that
can fit in a performing arts classroom.
The last group of K-12 staff I want to highlight
today are paraprofessionals, therapists,
and other staff, who may have close
and consistent contact with students.
CDC recognizes that K-12 staff will not
always be able to maintain 6 feet of distance
between themselves and the students.
These teachers and staff are considered
to be in the same general risk category
as direct service providers, who provide
similar services outside of the school setting.
In these cases, additional control measures
should be taken, such as using physical barriers
to separate staff and students from each
other in classrooms and other shared spaces
and reducing exposure amount by
reducing daily caseloads where feasible.
Administrators may also consider whether
service providers may need additional protective
equipment for some interactions with students.
For example, if there is a potential
that staff may be splashed or sprayed
with bodily fluids during work, consider using
standard precautions, including a facemask,
eye protection, disposable gloves, and a gown.
CDC recognizes that wearing masks may
not be possible in every situation.
Wearing facial coverings may be difficult
for students with sensory, cognitive,
or behavioral issues or may
introduce safety concerns.
Adaptations and alternatives, which are
discussed in depth on the CDC website,
should be considered whenever feasible,
to reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19
when wearing a mask is not feasible.
This was just a brief, high-level
overview of this new CDC resource,
Strategies for Protecting K-12 School Staff.
I invite you to visit our website, and to feel
free to email us at eocevent E-V-E-N-T 337
at CDC.gov with any follow-up questions.
In closing, school administrators working
together with local health officials, parents,
employees, and recognized employee
representative organizations,
play an important role in slowing the spread
of COVID-19 while protecting students,
teachers, staff, and communities.
We hope that the information
provided on the Strategies
for Protecting K-12 School Staff webpage
will assist them in these critical efforts.
With this, we completed the
overview of this new resource,
and I will now hand it back
over to you, Dr. Hall.
Thank you.
>> Thank you, Dr. McDonald, Dr. Guerin,
and Mr. Garcia, for sharing those updates.
That was a lot of information.
That was a high-level update.
I really highly encourage people
to check out the resources.
We've been posting the links in
the chat as they've been mentioned.
So, we're moving into the part of
our call that is question and answer,
and we did receive some questions in advance.
So, we're going to start with a few of those.
We do see some questions coming into
the Q&A box, and we are monitoring that.
So, please feel free to submit your questions.
So, the first question is for Dr. McDonald.
"Is the 15-minute standard to be
classified as a close contact cumulative?"
>> Well, thank you for that.
First, I'll just say that we really don't have
enough data to define the precise duration
and time that constitutes a prolonged exposure.
Recommendations do vary on the
length of time of exposure,
but 15 minutes of close exposure can be used as
an operational definition, and it is intended
to be total, or cumulative,
and not simply consecutive.
The 6 feet for 15 minutes rule is a
best estimate, based on our experience
with respiratory pathogens, such as SARS.
Brief interactions are less
likely to result in transmission.
However, symptoms and the type
of interactions are important.
For example, if someone sneezes or coughs
on you, well, that is a close contact,
and in general, think about
exposure like getting a sunburn.
We want to minimize exposure
over a period of time.
Over.
>> Thank you, Dr. McDonald.
I did see a question in the Q&A asking
for some additional clarification.
So, Alberto, you mentioned that
cloth masks are not considered PPE.
Could you clarify that?
>> Yeah, hi, thank you.
So, yeah, thank you for your question, and
that's the question that we get quite often,
and there seems to be a lot of confusion, but
cloth face coverings, they're not considered PPE
in the fact that they don't filtrate the small,
tiny particulates like an N-95 or a P-100 would.
What the cloth face coverings do is provide
source control to protect the other.
So, the idea is that the clock face coverings
would actually capture a lot of the droplets
that the wearer is actually emitting when
talking or singing or doing any activity
around other people and trying to
minimize the amount of droplets
that the wearer is actually emitting.
So, cloth face coverings are just
considered source control and not PPE itself.
Over.
>> Thank you.
The next question is for Dr. Guerin.
What are some strategies that
K-12 school administrators can use
to support the mental health and well-being of
K-12 teachers and staff during this pandemic?
>> Thanks, Dr. Hall.
This is such an important question,
and I appreciate the opportunity
to discuss it a little bit.
So, on the August 17th partners call,
Dr. Brooks discussed how Americans,
as well as people worldwide, have faced
substantial mental health challenges related
to COVID-19, such as anxiety
or depressive disorders.
He also talked about trauma or stress-related
disorders, substance use to cope with stress
or emotions related to COVID-19,
just to name a few.
So, the strategies that I've been talking
about today, related on August 20th,
provide some considerations for
school administrators to protect
and support the mental health of K-12
teachers and staff during the pandemic.
This is by no means an exhaustive
list that's provided,
but it does include some important ideas, such
as to provide mental health benefits to staff,
to circulate information about districts'
employee assistance plan and any mental health
and counseling services that might be available.
Some other ideas include implementing
flexible sick leave policies and practices,
evaluating changes to work design,
so, during this stressful time,
to eliminate nonessential
tasks, or consider doing that,
so staff can focus on the critical ones.
Another idea is supporting
coping and resilience.
So, encouraging teachers and school
staff to talk with people they trust
about they're concerns and how they're feeling.
This might also be important to post signage
throughout the buildings for disaster,
distress -- the disaster-distress helpline.
I have the number here, which is
1-800-985-5990 or text Talk with Us to 66746.
Another idea is fostering wellness.
So, considering holding staff meetings
that focus on mental health awareness,
facilities allow for appropriate social
distancing during these activities.
Another thought is to connect.
If remote work is necessary, remember,
know that physical distancing does
have to mean socially distant.
So, using virtual platforms, such as the one
we're using today, to continue teambuilding
and staff meetings can be good for morale.
Some other ideas include providing training.
So, offering training and technical support
for new job demands may help to reduce stress.
Modeling healthy behavior.
Encouraging all school leaders to take care
of their own physical, social,
and psychological needs.
So, these are just some of the ideas that we
have included in our strategies information,
and more information and additional
links to the information on coping
and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic
can be found on the CDC website,
and I think one of the links might have been
posted for that website, as well, in the chat.
Over. Thanks.
>> Thank you, Dr. Guerin.
That was really helpful information.
As we been monitoring the Q&A, we see
quite a few questions for Alberto.
So, one of the questions is, "What is your
recommendation for older school buildings
that lack functional HVAC systems?"
>> Yeah, thank you for that question.
That's another good question that we have had
to provide a response multiple times
during our deployment in the response.
So, recommendation is to open doors and windows
as much as possible to allow as much outdoor air
as you may be able to bring in the
space, but also, we understand that a lot
of states may be coming into colder weather.
So, we are a big proponent of
portable HEPA fan filter units.
These units are recirculating units,
and the output, or the exhaust,
of this unit is virtually 99.9% particle free.
So, by implementing these, a couple
of these units per classroom,
you're actually reducing the
particle count on the space.
So, if I had to make a recommendation
on what to use,
I would say a portable HEPA filter
would be high on my list, if I could.
Over.
>> Thank you.
Oh, this one's for you, also.
So, for school buses, what are some
ways that we can protect bus drivers
and students who are riding the bus?
>> Yeah, so, school systems can
implement a number of strategies
to reduce the risk of transmission on buses.
Drivers should practice all safety actions and
protocols, as indicated for other school staff,
which include hand hygiene
and cloth face coverings.
Similar to frequently touched surfaces,
buses should be cleaned and disinfected
at least daily using the
EPA-approved disinfectants.
Drivers can also create distance
between children on buses,
including sitting children one
student per row facing forward,
and skipping rose between students.
However, students who live in the same
household may sit together, if needed.
Schools may consider alternate strategies to
accommodate the reduced number of students
in buses, such as staggering pickup and drop-off
times or adding additional buses routes.
Schools should also consider having a spare
clean cloth face covering available to ensure
that all students where face coverings
on the bus, and drivers can open windows
to increase circulation of outdoor
air and should ensure that doing
so does not pose any safety and health concerns.
And during dismissal, schools might provide
physical guides, such as signs and tape
on the sidewalks, to ensure that students and
school staff remain at least 6 feet apart.
Over.
>> Thank you.
Dr. McDonald, what do schools and staff do if
there aren't many COVID cases in their area?
>> Oh, thank you for that.
First of all, CDC recommends that you work
with your local health officials to figure
out what are your strategies in your
community situation specific to your community?
If there aren't many cases in your area,
that's great, and let's work to keep it
that way while this pandemic lasts.
So, first and foremost, continue
to use preparedness strategies,
and definitely consider layering
multiple strategies,
as you've heard about, to prevent transmission.
Some social distancing strategies that you might
want to consider are even canceling field trips
or assemblies or other large
gatherings, which can be very high risk.
Limiting nonessential visitors to campuses,
including students from other schools
for programs like music, robotics, or
academic clubs, canceling or modifying classes
where students are likely to be in
very close contact, especially indoors,
staggering arrival and/or dismissal times.
Teaching students, staff, and
their families to maintain 6 feet
of distance between each other in schools.
This is especially important if cases go down,
so that people don't get out of those habits.
And of course, increasing the space
between desks to at least 6 feet.
Over.
>> Thank you, Dr. McDonald.
The next question is for Dr. Guerin.
What can school staff do to
protect themselves and others
from getting sick with COVID-19 at work?
>> Hi, Dr. Hall.
Sorry about that.
I'm having trouble finding my mute button here.
So, there are a number of
recommendations for staff to be able
to protect themselves while they're at work.
So, I think it's important to
remember that the responsibility
of protecting staff actually
lies with the employer.
So, just keeping that in mind,
I think, is really critical.
Practicing hand hygiene is
another important strategy.
We have talked about cohorting
of staff and students
and physical distancing is
another important strategy.
Wearing cloth face coverings, that's
something that has also come up on this call.
Alberto talked a little bit about the importance
of cloth face coverings and
masks for source control.
So, that's another important consideration,
as well as cleaning surfaces frequently.
So, this includes door handles and shared
equipment, also limiting the sharing
of equipment amongst teachers and staff, such
as, it could be sporting gear or any other kind
of shared equipment that might, typically,
given between classes or used communally.
This would be another way to protect
staff from the potential spread
of COVID-19 in the school environment.
>> Thank you, Dr. Guerin.
So, related to that, should
teachers be wearing gloves at work?
>> Thank you.
So, I talked a little bit about this in my talk.
So, at this time, there's not a general
recommendation for the wearing of gloves,
and certainly, there are some
school staff, if PPE is required,
that that would be part of the consideration.
So, this would include school healthcare staff.
So, school nurses.
I talked a little bit about the provision of
PPE for them, as well as the janitorial staff.
So, if it's required, if PPE is required
through hazard assessment that Alberto talked
about earlier, that might be another group
that would require the use of
gloves for their daily work
>> Thank you, Dr. Guerin.
The next question is for Dr. McDonald.
What should schools do if a staff member or
their family member has recently traveled
to an area with COVID-19
transmission in the community?
>> Sorry, just finding the mute button there.
Well, in general, travel increases your
chance of getting and spreading COVID-19,
and of course, staying home is the best way
to protect yourself and others from COVID-19,
and we should be thinking about
encouraging our travelers to not travel,
certainly if they're sick or
if they've been around someone
with COVID-19 in the last 14 days.
So, in general, of course, first and foremost,
actively encourage sick employees to stay home,
and sick employees should
follow CDC recommended steps.
Employees should not return to work until the
criteria to discontinue home isolation are met,
in consultation with healthcare providers.
And employees who are well but who
have a sick family member at home
with COVID-19 should notify their supervisor
and follow CDC-recommended precautions.
In general, our team can share
a link in the chat on what to do
after potential travel-associated exposure.
>> Great, thank you.
Dr. McDonald, this next one's for you also.
How can students safely participate
in school sports?
>> Yes, that's -- we actually do have a website
on that, "Considerations for Youth Sports,"
that you might find helpful to
assess the risk of youth sports,
alongside suggestions to reduce those risks.
There are a number of actions that youth sports
organizations can take to help lower the risk
of COVID-19 exposure and reduce the
spread during competition and/or practice.
The more people a child or coach interacts
with, the closer the physical interaction,
the more sharing of equipment
there is by multiple players,
and the longer that that interaction,
the higher the risk of COVID-19 spread.
Therefore, risk of COVID-19 spread can be
different, depending on the type of activity.
If schools are not able to keep in place safety
measures during competition, for example,
maintaining social distancing by keeping
children 6 feet apart at all times,
schools may consider dropping down a level
and limiting participation to
within-team competition only.
For example, scrimmages between members of
the same team or team-based practices only.
Also, if schools are unable to put in place
safety measures during team-based activities,
they may choose individual or at-home
activities, especially if any students
or the team are at high risk for severe illness.
Administrators can consult with state and
local health officials to determine if
and how to put into place these considerations.
>> Great, thank you.
Dr. Guerin, we're getting some questions
about lunchrooms and safety practices.
>> Yes, thank you, Dr. Hall.
So, that's one of the groups that is
covered in our strategies website,
or on our strategies website, and
that is special considerations
for school nutrition staff, who are so
critical to the functioning of schools.
So, at this time, there is no evidence to
indicate spread of COVID-19 through food,
but it's very important for school
administrators to maintain environments that are
as safe as possible for school nutrition
professionals, as well as the children who are
in the school buildings in those cases.
So, we do provide some guidance for school
administrators, and I encourage everyone to look
at the links for the other CDC school
websites that we have available,
as there's more information
related to protecting children
in the context of the school cafeteria.
But some of the guidance
that we have on our website
about supporting school nutrition professionals
and how they can be protected include
some of the following actions.
So, as feasible, having children
eat meals in classrooms
or outdoors while maintaining social
distance as much as possible instead
of in the communal dining halls or cafeterias.
Limiting offering of self-serve food or drink
options, such as hot and cold food bars,
salad or condiment bars, and drink stations.
Prepackaged meals is one of the options, or
one of the ideas that is provided for that.
Creating physical barriers to protect school
nutrition professionals from those they serve,
including students and also,
importantly, other school staff.
Using tape to mark workstations, so that they
maintain distance 6 feet apart in kitchens
and at food delivery points where
interactions with students or staff may occur.
Cleaning and disinfecting
frequently touched surfaces,
such as kitchen countertops,
refrigerator handles.
I know we got a question about
microwave handles, as well.
So, just all of those frequently
touched surfaces,
it's important to clean and
disinfect those regularly.
Training nutrition professional staff
in protecting themselves and others.
This could be conducted either
virtually or in person,
ensuring that physical distancing
is maintained during the training.
Posters are important in communal spaces,
including kitchens, related to staying home
when sick and cough and sneeze etiquette
and good hand hygiene, as well as,
we mentioned many times now, but providing,
or the use of appropriate clock face coverings
or masks and gloves or other appropriate
equipment to provide protection,
so that the glove question came up earlier.
So, this would be another group
where that might be a consideration.
And I think I will leave it there, but I
would like to refer everyone to that website,
and we also have another website for school
nutrition professionals, a CDC website.
So, those are great resources for learning more
about protecting this critical staff group.
>> Thank you, Dr. Guerin.
I'm seeing quite a few questions about
masks and a couple about face shields.
We're going to post in the chat a webpage
that we just released last week that talks
about different considerations for
selecting, wearing, and cleaning your mask.
There's some really helpful
information on there.
We are getting some questions
about masks protecting the wearer.
Dr. McDonald, could you weigh
in on that, please?
>> Certainly, yes.
So, you've heard about cloth
face coverings, or masks,
that are not personal protective equipment.
They're not scientifically developed
specifically to protect the, or certified,
and part of a respiratory protection
program to protect the wearer,
but the idea of source control is
that if they're used by everyone,
or even most people, they benefit everyone.
So, including preventing,
and remember, this also,
that preventing transmission between employees.
So, employees in a school-based setting can
serve as sources, as well as be at risk.
So, that's the point there that putting
the cloth face covering on, or wearing one,
prevents you from transmitting to others, and if
we get everyone to do this, we're all benefited.
Over.
>> Thank you so much, Dr. McDonald.
We're getting near the end of our time.
So, I'd like to ask each of our presenters
if they have any additional closing remarks
or additional thoughts that
they'd like to share.
Dr. McDonald, you just started.
So, we'll go in reverse order.
Mr. Garcia, any final thoughts you
would like to share with the audience?
>> No, other than thanking the opportunity
to share some of the research and guidance
that we have, or knowledge,
that you we have put together,
and we hope that it's helpful for everybody.
>> Thank you.
Dr. Guerin.
>> Thank you for this opportunity.
It was a pleasure speaking with everyone today,
and we invite you to visit the
website and to email any questions.
Unfortunately, it looks like we had a lot of
questions we weren't able to get to today,
and we hope that maybe some of those questions
will be answered through the resources
that we have online, and we thank you for your
time and wish everyone to stay safe and healthy.
>> Thank you, Dr. Guerin.
Dr. McDonald?
>> Yes, I'll just say one more
time, remember, it your flu shot.
This is a great time to be thinking about that.
>> Great, thank you.
I do want to add that we do receive a report of
all the questions that were posted in the Q&A,
and this is the challenge each week.
We're never able to get to all the
questions, but we do read through them,
and they're very helpful for
the team in helping us think
about additional topics for future calls.
So, thank you for sharing those.
Thank you to everyone for
joining our call today.
We have been recording it, and it
will be posted online on our webpage.
It will also be on our YouTube channel page.
We did include the link to
subscribe to the partner updates.
So, please join that list, so that you
will get these invitations directly.
We will not be having this
partner call next week,
September 7th, and observance of Labor Day.
Thank you again, and please join us when we
resume the calls again on September 14th,
where we will be discussing
caregiving during COVID-19.
Thank you.
