Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago MINISTRY OF EDUCATION Education Towers, No.5 St. Vincent Street, Port of Spain, Trinidad 868.622.2181 www.moe.gov.tt E: 19/12/37 Vol IV FROM : Chief Education Officer Ministry of Education TO : Deputy Permanent Secretary u.fs SSIII; SSII; SSI; Principals DATE : November 11, 2021 SUBJECT : Procedure for treating with suspected COVID-19 eases ~ Schools Consequent on the physical return of students to the classroom during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Education takes this opportunity to reiterate the protocols and procedures for treating with suspected as well as confirmed COVID-19 cases at schools. Section 2.7 of the Guidelines for the Reopening of Schools Phase 2 ~ October 25", 2021 outlines the processes for dealing with positive COVID-19 cases or symptoms. These are as follows: Schools must follow these protocols in the event of staff or students: «Testing positive for COVID-19; + Being identified as a primary contact of a person testing positive for COVID-19; * Being medically cleared to re-enter the school population after suspected/confirmed to have contracted COVID-19. Information provided by the CMOH + If the school is informed by the CMOH that a member of the school population, who has been physically attending, has tested positive: + The School Supervisor and EDHSU must be immediately alerted via the prescribed form, Appendix I, Page 1 of 3+ A request for written correspondence from the CMOH to the prineipal must be made by the EDHSU, (A copy of a Quarantine Notice from the CMOH will suffice); + Any documentation on the matter from the CMOH must be forwarded to the School Supervisor upon receipt; + The Chief Education Officer will advise on the sanitation arrangements for schools on a case by case basis, after consultation with the Executive of the Ministry of Education and the EDHSU. Where schools are required to close for sanitation purposes, approval will be conveyed to Principals through the Chief Education Officer. + Information as required by the MOH for contact tracing, as advised by the District Nurse, must be forwarded. This involves the preparation of a database of all students, staff and visitors who came into contact with the individual. The database should include the following: a. Name of infected person b. ‘The name of parent, if infected person is a student c. Telephone contact 4. Residential address e. Email address f. Contact information for all persons who would have been in direct, contact with the infected person. ‘+ If the infected person is a student, the class to which he/she belongs will be sercened by the district nurse and the information submitted to the CMOIT for assessment. Persons contacted by the CMOH/EDHSU must adhere to quarantine orders, Please note that a Quarantine Order applies to all persons resident at the premises; + The CMOH remains the only authority to issue a quarantine or release from quarantine order; + A Principal’s report, inclusive of copy of the school’s protocol to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and a list of the areas on the compound that the student/other individual visited, ‘must be submitted to the School Supervisor and the EDHSU. Information provided by the Individual + If the school is informed by the infected individual that they have tested positive for COVID-19, the School Supetvisor and EDHSU must be immediately informed, The EDHSU will then advise the Principal accordingly; ‘+ All protocols as indicated above should be followed. Page 2 of 3Identification as primary contact + If a staff member or student has been identified as a primary contact of a confirmed COVID-19 case, it is the obligation of the staff member or parent to inform the school principal and District Health Nurse immediately and provide a copy of the quarantine notice indicating such; + If the Staff member or student later reports that they have tested positive, the School Supervisor and the EDHSU should be immediately alerted and the procedure outlined previously should be followed. Documentation required + It must be noted that all claims must be supported by official documentation from CMOH or the institution where testing was done. The CMOH is the only authorized body for issuing a quarantine or release from quarantine order. The EDHSU will ensure the appropriate actions are carried out on review of each case and the evidence provided. Individuals are reminded to ensure compliance to the guidance provided by the Personnel Department Circular No. 2 of 2020 ‘Leave Provisions within the Public Service for Employees who are absent from duty as a consequence of circumstances associated with the COVID-19 Pandemic’, in order to ensure they are covered. ‘Your cooperation in these matters is appreciated as we seek to provide a safe working and learning, environment for all. Regards, Mrs. Lisa Henry-David Chief Education Officer (Ag) c¢___Director, School Supervision and Management Division MINISTRY OF EDUCATION Chief Education Oificer | Page 3 of 3DATA ON COVID-19 CASES AT SCHOOLS. EDUCATION DISTRICT : ‘NAME OF SCHOO! ‘NAME OF PERSON/S POSITION AT SCHOOL STATUS PRIMARY CONTACT a ‘SUBJECT TO A QUARANTINE NOTICE o SYMPTOMATIC 0 COVIDPOSITIVE a ‘CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING THE CASE (Where contracted etc) LAST DATE AT SCHOOL. "AREAS VISITED AT SCHOOL "ARE COVID-19 PROTOCOLS YESa NOo BEING FOLLOWED AT THE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL DATEDATA ON COVID-19 CASES AT SCHOOLS ‘NUMBER OF PERSONS FOR CONTRACT TRACING CONTACT TRACING LIST PROVIDED TO CMOH YESO NOo RECOMMENDATION OF EDUCATION DISTRICT HEALTH NURSE SANITISATION AT LEVEL OF SCHOOL o DEEP SANITISATION ORGANISED BY HEAD OFFICE c ‘SCHOOL SHOULD BE CLOSED UNTIL SANITISATION o ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: EDUCATION DISTRICT NURSE,