It’s not surprising that children under 10 have more cases of COVID-19: Dr. Roumeliotis

Ottawa-Eastern Ontario Healthcare Officer is not a surprise.

And just five weeks later, at the beginning of a new school year, Dr. Paul Lumeriotis of the Eastern Ontario Health Unit is now socializing to help people of all ages to socialize to limit the spread of COVID-19. He says it is important to practice physical distance.

“The better we manage it, the closer we get to regular school,” said Roumeliotis during an interview with Stefan Keyes at Six at CTV News.

On Saturday, Ottawa Public Health reported that 9 of 28 new cases of COVID-19 included children under the age of 10. The other two cases involve young people aged 10 to 19 years.

“I’m not surprised. As a pediatrician, I said earlier that I know children are very vulnerable to the virus. However, this does not cause a significant illness to the majority of children. I knew,” Dr. Roumeliotis said Saturday night.

“But that’s one of the reasons why kids close school in March. Because children may have very mild symptoms, fearing they will get it. , Give it to parents and grandparents.”

Dr. Roumeliotis has more kids going out to parties and other gatherings as Ottawa and eastern Ontario move to Stage 3 and more business resumes.

The Eastern Ontario Health Unit tested positive for COVID-19 in eight people under the age of 20. Another 15 people, aged 20 to 29, tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Dr. Roumeliotis said he was unaware of the details of the case involving children under the age of 10 in Ottawa, but the case involving children in his area said, “They don’t have social distances or parties. Was part of “going to.”

In Ottawa, the Ottawa Public Health Service calls for people to be socially aware of COVID. It includes encouraging people to interact outdoors rather than indoors.

“We need to understand that we are still in the midst of a pandemic and literally have the virus in our backyard,” Dr. Rumeliotis said.

“What we have to do is to clearly teach our children and their parents that they can go out, go to restaurants, meet with friends, but need to be socially separated. “

Although Dr. Roumeliotis may have thought that the situation with COVID-19 has improved since moving to Stage 3, it is our responsibility to keep limiting the spread of COVID-19.

“If I send a message there and those young individuals and their parents are, obviously, I understand and understand that the more I can control the virus, the more I can go back to school. Or if it’s normal in the fall, you’ll be able to withstand the next wave.”

Back to school

Next week, the Government of Ontario will announce plans for the September semester. The school board was instructed to prepare three scenarios. A hybrid model for full-time classes, in-class and online learning and online learning.

An anchor at CTV News at Six, Stefan Keyes, asked Dr. Roumelitios about the surge in cases involving children when authorities reopened schools and nurseries.

“It’s always a concern. Schools have been concerned because it’s difficult to manage infection control and other precautions. Dr. Roumeliotis said that school environments, day care settings, and all prevention of day camps. A well-thought-out scenario seems to be a bit easier to control than an uncontrolled party.

“We are optimistic that we can put safeguards in the schools, day care and day camps we are looking at. Some people are monitoring the situation.”

Dr. Roumeliotis said the school environment could be different from the private parties to which some of the new cases are related.

“What’s happening is these are private parties that you don’t go to restaurants, bars, etc. Most of them are private parties that no one oversees,” Dr. Roumeliotis is thinking of reopening school. ..

“I’m optimistic that if we do what we have to do together, we can take these precautions to really prevent infections and observe and remind these measures at those schools.” .”

Dr. Roumeliotis says he is optimistic about opening a school in September, but numbers can change as the summer continues.

“We have better control over it. The closer you are to a regular school, the more you start.”