SARASOTA COUNTY, Fla. — After looking at the positivity rate in Sarasota County, the director of the county's Health Department says he feels good about the reopening of schools on Monday.
One of the biggest concerns for parents and even teachers, is what happens if someone tests positive for COVID-19 at a school?
"We've developed an online form that feeds into a database that all staff and students will be tracked on,” said Sarasota Schools’ Chief Operating Officer Jody Dumas.
The School District of Sarasota hopes its strict COVID-19 plans and procedures will keep the virus from spreading through schools.
If you're sending your child back to the classroom, all parents have to sign a form, promising to take their child's temperature and check for COVID-19 symptoms each morning before school.
"We are going to provide a list of common COVID-19 symptoms and we are going to ask parents please if your student is experiencing any of these symptoms don't put them on a bus, don't bring them to the bus stop, don't bring them to school,” Dumas said. “That's our first line of defense."
"If we do have a situation on campus where a student presents symptoms similar to COVID we will bring that student to the clinic and isolate them,” said Sarasota Schools Health Services Supervisor Susie Dubose.
Dubose says the district has evaluated its spaces and have enough room to isolate those students that might be symptomatic.
“And keep an eye on them until their parents or guardians are able to get to the school and pick them up,” Dubose said.
That student would then have to stay home for 10 days.
“You cannot return back to school unless you go and get a negative test,” Dumas said. “That would allow you to come back earlier than 10 days or you go to your doctor and you get an alternative diagnosis.”
The same goes if a teacher is displaying COVID-19 symptoms.
“If you are sick, once that 10-day window expires or you got the negative test or you’ve gotten the alternative diagnosis, we are asking in every case for students and staff to call the health department and get a release to come back to school or a release to come back to work,” Dumas said.
Dumas says it's only when a positive COVID-19 test is reported that contact tracing begins.
"If it turns out that we have a positive diagnosis then the Department of Health, the administrative offices of the school district, the Landings, and the school site will work with anyone that is at risk,” Dubose said.
“It’s going to be all hands on deck,” Dumas said. “We will be talking to the teacher about what did class look like over the last couple of days, you know, where was this student sitting?”
To make this process easier, the district is strongly recommending teachers follow a seating chart in their classrooms.
“They are also going to pod the classrooms together so that they can track any COVID cases should they occur,” said Christy Chilton, a mom with two kids in the Sarasota School District.
“When you are identified as having contact with somebody you will also receive a Department of Health letter that says 'hey if I’m a student or I am an employee you’ve had that contact and you need to be out for this number of days,'” Dumas said.
If you are the COVID-19 positive case, you'll be required to self-isolate for 10 days, since the date of the test or since the start of symptoms.
If you are an identified student or teacher who came in contact with a positive case, you'll have to quarantine for 14 days. In this case, there’s no way to get back to school sooner. You must stay out the entire length of time until you are cleared by the health department to return to school.
- 'Black Panther' actor Chadwick Boseman dies at 43 after cancer battle
- NHC Tracking 2 disturbances in the tropics
- Husband arrested after wife's body, severed head found in Indiana
- New Florida COVID-19 cases stay below 4K for seventh day in a row, as percent positive dips below 5%
- Florida's largest teachers' union victory on reopening schools short-lived as judge reinstates emergency stay
- Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd says homeowner was 'perfectly justified' shooting intruder
►Breaking news and weather alerts: Get the free 10 Tampa Bay app
►Stay In the Know! Sign up now for the Brightside Blend Newsletter