“Nikol Aghbalyan” Primary School N 19: 727 out of 1378 pupils are absent, school # 8 after Alexander Pushkin: 1421 out of 1866 pupils are absent,” Ani Khachatryan member of Yerevan Council of the Elders.
According to her, there is a large number of absents in schools these days, but the authorities say the reports are panic-stricken. “Reasonable panic. And the fact that children the parents do not send their children to school because of their concerns is normal. That’s the worry that really exists, and I disagree with the numbers that 25 percent of those missing are sick and the rest do not come do thisa not to get infected,” the council member says, adding that her child, who also studies in Pushkin School # 8, is sick.
She also notes that when a child’s temperature drops, parents rush to take them to school to avoid absences and to avoid passing the reexamination, which causes other children to become infected.
“I have offered the municipality a few options; I have spoken with all departments to take a week-long vacation instead of spring holidays, or another option that was reasonable; The municipality will petition the Ministry of Education and Science that children who receive a doctor’s call will have polyclinic-approved paper, do not receive these absences, and do not attend school. In this case, parents will not be afraid of the absents and will not send sick children to school,” Ani Khachatryan said.
The council member also added that principals receive calls from the state bodies to tell the parents to bring their children to school, and the principles tell the teaching staff to tell the parents to send their the children to school, which seems like coercion.
Ashot Sargsyan, an adviser to the Minister of Health, a member of the Yerevan Council of the Elders, says that it is normal to have illnesses this season; he is ill too. “Of course this bothers us. Both the Ministry of Health and the Department of Health of the Yerevan Municipality take every possible measure to prevent it,” Ashot Sargsyan says.
According to him, among the large number of absents it is really difficult to find out how many children are actually out of school due to illness, and there are many cases when parents fear that their children may become infected and do not send them to school. Such cases are about 30-70 percent.
Ashot Sargsyan also mentioned that although children may not attend school, they may invite a neighbor’s child to stay at home or go to an entertainment area where there are still many children, which is another form of being infected.
The Adviser to the Minister of Health appealed to the parents.
It should also be noted that according to the data of 10 February, the Ministry of Health reports that epidemiological surveillance of acute respiratory infections is continuing on a daily basis, the results of which indicate that the disease has an increasing tendency.
Outbreaks of disease have been reported in outpatient polyclinics, hospital organizations, and emergency services.
Epidemiological surveillance of morbidity caused by acute respiratory infections continues in schools and pre-school organizations. According to today’s data, the absence of acute respiratory infections in the republic made 3.8%. Unique educational organizations have reported high rates of absence of acute respiratory infections. To prevent the spread of acute respiratory infections in educational institutions, the “epidemic filter” has been strengthened in these organizations by engaging the potential of the concerned institutions. As a result, 1894 children (723 in Yerevan and 1171 in the provinces) were denied access to educational institutions.
It should be reminded that influenza A and H1N1 subtype and B are still in circulation in the republic, as well as other respiratory infections (rhinovirus, bokavirus, respiratory syncytial virus, adenovirus).
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Alisa Chilingaryan
