The number of infected children in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is worrying. As many as 300 students have been infected in the Republika Srpska (RS) entity since the beginning of the school year. In just four days, 115 schoolchildren became infected in Canton Sarajevo (CS). Due to the appearance of the virus in some schools, many people were in a panic and wondered what to do now. However, the profession is calming the situation. There is no need for panic, they assure. The rules, they say, are clear, and no severe clinical picture has been reported in children.
The school year has already begun and this time, the students are in school. Due to the pandemic, however, there are special regulations, rules of conduct, and more restrictive measures. There are specific protocols in schools on how to act if a student is positive for this virus, which has become more and more common lately.
”If one student has symptoms of coronavirus, he is, of course, sent to isolation, and if more students are positive, we areobliged to contact the Public Health Institute to give us further recommendations on how to act, ” explained Lejla Tuzlak, director of the First Gymnasium Sarajevo.
It is recommended that each school has an isolated room if certain symptoms develop in children or teachers during classes, and also to perform testing and establish contacts. If the virus is found in several children, the whole class needs to be isolated. Such is the case with one department in RS.
”We had two students and three students in one class who had symptoms and that class was isolated and is in isolation for 14 days now, ” told Dragan Kovacevic, director of the elementary school “Dositej Obradovic”.
Autumn brings allergies, as well as other respiratory viruses. What comforts parents and children is that so far there have been no more severe clinical pictures in this population. Cases of high fever for days, severe cough, increased secretion from the nose, and stomach problems, require a visit to the doctor, but there were no cases of major complications.
”It is a great happiness that it is common for children to have a lighter clinical picture and they easier to go through the disease itself, ” pointed out the pediatrician Prim. dr. Amra Junuzovic Kaljic.
Even though there have been no severe cases of infection, compliance with epidemiological measures is mandatory. Authorities emphasize that vaccination for children from 12 to 15 years of age with the consent of parents and a pediatrician’s examination is not a problem.
“We have a number of children who have been vaccinated. They reacted very well and did not have any serious side effects, ” stated Branislav Zeljkovic, acting director of the RS Institute of Public Health.
There is no room for panic. The epidemiological situation in schools is only a reflection of the epidemiological situation in the community, so it is the responsibility of each individual to fight our common enemy. For now, the education system is functioning live in compliance with the measures, but they notedthat, if the situation requires aggravation, they are ready to teach online, Federalna writes.
E.Dz.
