16th October 2020
Dear Parent/Guardian,
CONFIRMED CASE OF COVID-19 in Tannaghmore Primary School
The Public Health Agency has been notified of a confirmed case of COVID-19 associated with Tannaghmore Primary School. The Public Health Agency has worked with the school principal to undertake a risk assessment and has identified your child as a close contact, which occurred on 13th October 2020.
In general close contacts are people who had direct face to face contact within one metre of an infected individual for any length of time, including a face to face conversation, being coughed on or having direct physical contact (skin-to-skin). People who spent more than 15 continuous minutes within two metres of the infected person are also close contacts.
Advice to self-isolate
In line with national guidance, your child should stay at home and self-isolate for 14 days from the last contact with the case, which is up to and including 27th October 2020.
Your child must not go to school or any public areas during this time: your child must remain at home.
You do not need to arrange a test for your child unless they develop symptoms.
If your child does have a test and it is negative they still need to complete the 14 days isolation. This is because it can take up to 14 days for the symptoms of infection to develop.
Provided your child and everyone else in their household have no COVID-19 symptoms, the remainder of the household can carry on with their normal activities. If your child is well at the end of the period of self-isolation, then they can return to usual activities.
Further details of what your child needs to do are found in the self-isolation guidance, which can be accessed at the following link: https://www.publichealth.hscni.net/covid-19-coronavirus/covid-19-information-public/frequently-asked-questions#what-does-self-isolation-mean
What to do if your child develops symptoms of COVID 19
For most people, especially children, COVID-19 will be a mild illness.
The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are recent onset of:
new continuous cough and/or
high temperature and/or
a loss of, or change in, normal sense of taste or smell (anosmia)
If your child develops any of these symptoms, they should remain at home and arrangements should be made for them to be tested. At that time all other household members must also stay at home, not go to work, school or public areas, even for exercise. Testing for all symptomatic individuals in Northern Ireland can be booked at www.nhs.uk/ask-for-a-coronavirus-test
If the test is negative:
Your child should still complete their 14 days self-isolation period.
Household contacts can resume normal activities.
If the test is positive:
A new period of self-isolation will begin for your child, for 10 days from the date of onset of symptoms. After 10 days, if your child has not had a fever for at least 48 hours, they can return to normal activities.
Household contacts should remain in self-isolation for 14 days from the onset of symptoms of their household member.
How to stop COVID-19 spreading
There are things you can do to help reduce the risk of you and anyone you live with getting ill with COVID-19:
wash your hands with soap and water often – do this for at least 20 seconds
use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available
wash your hands as soon as you get home
cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze
put used tissues in the bin immediately and wash your hands afterwards
Further information
For further information, please see the Public Health Agency website https://www.publichealth.hscni.net/covid-19-coronavirus or contact NHS 111. If your child feels unwell and you are worried about their symptoms or about anyone else in the home, please contact your GP.
I know that staying at home for a prolonged period of time may be hard for you and your child but it is vital to help reduce the risk of transmission in the community.
Your support is very much appreciated.
Yours sincerely,
Dr Joanne McClean
Consultant in Public Health Medicine
