The Arizona teacher who died had Lupus, Diabetes and Asthma / those affected qualify for paid leave

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a teacher and at the minimum I will be wearing a mask AND a face shield. I am most likely also buying scrubs to wear. I will carry had sanitizer with me at all times. I teach small children. I understand this will probably scare them but it is what I need to do for my family.

I’ll be doing the same and a hair bonnet. Maybe even goggles. I know it sounds so crazy, but that will make me feel safer.

It also means visually underscoring -- for adults as well as kids -- that this is a time when we have to stay careful and vigilant for one another. You can't be casual about rubbing your nose on your sleeve, much less things that bring people into direct contact.

That's going to mean parents having some hard conversations with kids who will have questions, and then questions about the answers. I know people are already talking to their kids, but kids are somewhat shielded. It's different when your teacher is wearing mask, goggles or eye protection, maybe a bonnet or face shield, and can't come close to you.

I think we're going to see a spate of children's books coming out about this. I am certain there are many in the works. Hopefully we can share the good ones that seem to help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Also, we can't say definitively that the teacher got infected at school. We know people in AZ have not really been staying home, so it's possible she could have got it somewhere else.

It doesn’t matter where she got it. The result will be the same for hybrid/in person. The class/school will shut down for 14 days minimum. I don’t know why people are harping in getting it at school. It does not change the result.

People are posting this story as supposed proof that it is unsafe for teachers to be in the school building (in support of 100% DL). People are pointing out that she may have gotten it elsewhere.

True, but it spread to the other two adults who were in school spending hours together but taking all recommended precautions. That's the dangerous part.

Most transmissions are adult-adult or adult-kid. I would definitely eliminate in-person contact between teachers/staff in the fall, to the extent possible. Staff mtgs can be virtual. Teachers' lounge can be one at a time to get lunch.

Please tell me more about your plan to cycle 80+ people through one room at lunch time.

Or 200 in our school....

That said, I would assume anyone eating anything is doing it at their desks.

I assumed the PP was talking about getting lunch out of the (only) fridge and (only) microwave. Obviously we'll have to bring and store our own lunches as these areas will be off limits. It just drives me crazy that someone posts a "duh you can just do XYZ" to a single problem and bam, schools can be opened. It's clear the PP doesn't have a clue how staff lunches work.

Agree. I want hybrid as much as the next person, but I acknowledge this is not an easy problem to solve- and may not be solvable in a way that keeps people safe.

I'm the PP who made the lunchroom suggestions. I didn't mean to be flippant (was posting in a hurry btwn wrk mtgs). I think the teachers' lounge problem could be addressed as another PP mentioned--either bring cold packs/hot packs or sign up for 5-min slots in the teachers' lounge.

What's going to be REALLY hard to implement is no standing and fraternizing with other teachers/staff unless outdoors. It's human nature to want to chat with coworkers, so will be tough. Many of us parents will face the same thing when we go back to our offices (although some of us are essential workers, like my spouse, and have been at work this whole time).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Lots of use of this tragedy of the teacher who died out in Arizona as justification for DL ONLY

BUT what no one is being honest about is that, according to what is also reported in the original news story, that teacher had 3 pre-existing conditions:

Lupus
Diabetes
Asthma

Each of which qualified her for paid work from home. So, questions you should be asking is not WHY should schools Re-OPEN, instead ask:


1) Did the HR in her school district publish and list the qualifiying conditions for which a teacher could get paid leave or DL paid ?

DCPS has met this requirement

2) Did this teacher see her MD prior to returning to in person teaching ?

DCPS requires this also

Were ALL state metrics met prior to re-open phase: contact tracing levels at 100% within 24 hours and percent positive test below 5 % for the muncipality where she lived taught

If NOT, don't blame the school children blame the policies NOT ENFORCED

DC can do better

MCPS is stating that the obesity risk is for over 40 BMI although the CDC says 30 BMI.
Moderate asthma can depend on a lot of things that your doctor might write, but is not the sane for every patient. My doctor looks at how often you use your inhaler. Since I avoid my triggers, like cold air, my doctor says I have mild asthma. But if I couldn’t avoid my triggers, I would be considered moderate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When you consider that obesity, asthma, diabetes, heart disease etc. are pre-existing conditions, you are talking about a MAJORITY of adults. So it's not really useful to point them out as a reason why in person teaching is a good idea.

A majority of adults OVER A CERTAIN AGE.

In 2017–2018, the age-adjusted prevalence of obesity in adults was 42.4%, and there were no significant differences between men and women among all adults or by age group.

42% of adults are obese. That's just one of the preexisting conditions.

It very much depends on community. In my school district, very few of the teachers are obese. So perhaps we could stay open while other districts do DL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When you consider that obesity, asthma, diabetes, heart disease etc. are pre-existing conditions, you are talking about a MAJORITY of adults. So it's not really useful to point them out as a reason why in person teaching is a good idea.

A majority of adults OVER A CERTAIN AGE.

In 2017–2018, the age-adjusted prevalence of obesity in adults was 42.4%, and there were no significant differences between men and women among all adults or by age group.

42% of adults are obese. That's just one of the preexisting conditions.

It very much depends on community. In my school district, very few of the teachers are obese. So perhaps we could stay open while other districts do DL.

Kudos to your school district and all the skinny teachers. Unfortunately, DCPS has lots of fatties. Seriously, what is the point of posting that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lots of use of this tragedy of the teacher who died out in Arizona as justification for DL ONLY

BUT what no one is being honest about is that, according to what is also reported in the original news story, that teacher had 3 pre-existing conditions:

Lupus
Diabetes
Asthma

Each of which qualified her for paid work from home. So, questions you should be asking is not WHY should schools Re-OPEN, instead ask:


1) Did the HR in her school district publish and list the qualifiying conditions for which a teacher could get paid leave or DL paid ?

DCPS has met this requirement

2) Did this teacher see her MD prior to returning to in person teaching ?

DCPS requires this also

Were ALL state metrics met prior to re-open phase: contact tracing levels at 100% within 24 hours and percent positive test below 5 % for the muncipality where she lived taught

If NOT, don't blame the school children blame the policies NOT ENFORCED

DC can do better

MCPS is stating that the obesity risk is for over 40 BMI although the CDC says 30 BMI.
Moderate asthma can depend on a lot of things that your doctor might write, but is not the sane for every patient. My doctor looks at how often you use your inhaler. Since I avoid my triggers, like cold air, my doctor says I have mild asthma. But if I couldn’t avoid my triggers, I would be considered moderate.
/quote]

She had Lupus and Diabetes and Heart Disease people ! If you seriously think half of DC teachers have Lupus you are crazy

And good luck claiming ADA because you are fat and refuse to exercise. You have been paid to work from home for 4 months. Get in shape !

[Anonymous]

The point people are making about that case is that is shows that the measures being touted for keeping people free of the virus in classrooms don't work.

Similarly, for all the people saying kid-kid transmission doesn't happen, camps are proving that is wrong too. Kids were the first people pulled and protected when the virus began to spread; that is likely why there was low transmission. Where kids are getting together now while the virus is still spreading, kids are getting it (camps, vacations, parties, etc.).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The point people are making about that case is that is shows that the measures being touted for keeping people free of the virus in classrooms don't work.

Similarly, for all the people saying kid-kid transmission doesn't happen, camps are proving that is wrong too. Kids were the first people pulled and protected when the virus began to spread; that is likely why there was low transmission. Where kids are getting together now while the virus is still spreading, kids are getting it (camps, vacations, parties, etc.).

I posted this on another thread, but it seems that younger kids are actually not spreading it much based on the current data. The camp breakouts have mostly been teens at overnight camps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The point people are making about that case is that is shows that the measures being touted for keeping people free of the virus in classrooms don't work.

Similarly, for all the people saying kid-kid transmission doesn't happen, camps are proving that is wrong too. Kids were the first people pulled and protected when the virus began to spread; that is likely why there was low transmission. Where kids are getting together now while the virus is still spreading, kids are getting it (camps, vacations, parties, etc.).

I posted this on another thread, but it seems that younger kids are actually not spreading it much based on the current data. The camp breakouts have mostly been teens at overnight camps.

No, the YMCA campers were 7-14, the staff were 15-22; 18% of the campers got it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The point people are making about that case is that is shows that the measures being touted for keeping people free of the virus in classrooms don't work.

Similarly, for all the people saying kid-kid transmission doesn't happen, camps are proving that is wrong too. Kids were the first people pulled and protected when the virus began to spread; that is likely why there was low transmission. Where kids are getting together now while the virus is still spreading, kids are getting it (camps, vacations, parties, etc.).

I posted this on another thread, but it seems that younger kids are actually not spreading it much based on the current data. The camp breakouts have mostly been teens at overnight camps.

No, the YMCA campers were 7-14, the staff were 15-22; 18% of the campers got it.

PP here--I saw that story. Of course I said *most* outbreaks have been teens. My hunch is that the kids were middle/high school aged, not on the younger end. However, they didn't publish the ages of the kids who got it.

[Anonymous]

In my school nearly half the staff are special education or ESOL teachers, or assistants for preK, kindergarten or special education, not to mention reading teachers. To say we just shouldn’t allow adults near each other shows a limited sense of what a classroom today looks like. Not to mention, none of these adults have a classroom of their own, so they have to be in someone else’s room. The concern with the Arizona story is that that adults passed it despite taking apparent precautions. In August and September we will see if that is borne out on a larger scale.

[Anonymous]

The NYC Department of Education just released the medical conditions that qualify people to teach from home:
Age (65 + by December 31 2020)
Chronic Kidney Disease
COPD
Immunocompromised state
Heart condition
Sickle cell disease
Type 2 diabetes
Asthma
Cerebrovascular disease
Cystic fibrosis
Hypertension or high blood pressure
Liver disease
Neurologic conditions, such as dementia
Pregnancy
Pulmonary fibrosis
Obesity (BMI >30)
Smoking
Thalassemia
Type 1 Diabetes
and "Other" which you fill in

That's a lot of people.

[Anonymous]

She was teaching remotely FROM her classroom. She was overweight and had several health conditions that made her high risk. I don't understand why she couldn't have taught from home. Nobody knows where she picked up the virus. It could have been anywhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lots of use of this tragedy of the teacher who died out in Arizona as justification for DL ONLY

BUT what no one is being honest about is that, according to what is also reported in the original news story, that teacher had 3 pre-existing conditions:

Lupus
Diabetes
Asthma

Each of which qualified her for paid work from home. So, questions you should be asking is not WHY should schools Re-OPEN, instead ask:


1) Did the HR in her school district publish and list the qualifiying conditions for which a teacher could get paid leave or DL paid ?

DCPS has met this requirement

2) Did this teacher see her MD prior to returning to in person teaching ?

DCPS requires this also

Were ALL state metrics met prior to re-open phase: contact tracing levels at 100% within 24 hours and percent positive test below 5 % for the muncipality where she lived taught

If NOT, don't blame the school children blame the policies NOT ENFORCED

DC can do better

MCPS is stating that the obesity risk is for over 40 BMI although the CDC says 30 BMI.
Moderate asthma can depend on a lot of things that your doctor might write, but is not the sane for every patient. My doctor looks at how often you use your inhaler. Since I avoid my triggers, like cold air, my doctor says I have mild asthma. But if I couldn’t avoid my triggers, I would be considered moderate.

BMI is a pretty lousy metric for determining whether somebody is overweight because you could have somebody who is very muscular and have a 30 bmi.

[Anonymous]

The headline should have read: older person with multiple pre existing conditions got COVID and died. While students and two other teachers working with her didn’t. But that’s not a headline.