Letter To The Editor - Expert Says Evidence Points Against Re-Opening Schools
EDITOR’S NOTE - The following is a letter sent to the Prairie South School Division regarding yesterday’s decision to re-open schools on April 12th. We have been asked to re-print it and decided to do so as the writer is a medical expert in the field of microbiology and immunization and it adds another viewpoint on an issue that is of great concern in the community.
We have afforded PSSD the opportunity to reply if they so chose to do so - they have respectfully declined.
The letter is the personal viewpoint of the writer based upon his speciality and may or may not reflect the views of MJ Independent. We publish it as a public service.
Greetings Mr. Bachmann and Mr. Baldwin,
I am reaching out to you today to implore you to make a decision that is science-backed and evidence based with regards to reopening Moose Jaw schools to in-person instruction.
My name is Kyle Anderson, but I am probably better known as Dr. Kyle (@DrKyle) for the approximately 85 media interviews I have given on covid in this province, tens of thousands of views of my videos explaining covid statistics, trends and dangers, and the 10-million or more views of my covid tweets on social media.
I am also a father of 5, my kids are ages 8 through 15, and I know how essential schools are to a community and the parents that rely on them.
I know that phase 4 schooling puts lower-income students and families at a disadvantage, and that the burden to care for children at home predominantly falls on women.
This is not a recommendation I take lightly, but it is one that I am 100% certain is for the greater good of everyone in your community.
The incidence of covid-19 in South Central 2 is currently 37.78 cases per day per 100k individuals and has been above 30 since March 31st.
When Regina announced they would be going to phase 4 on March 19th their incidence was only 22.11, that means your community has a 70% higher rate of cases now than when Regina made the decision for phase 4. Is an incidence above 30 really that high?
The organization Covid Act Now advocates that anything above 25 be considered critical and requires swift and decisive action to protect a community.
Positivity (the percentage of tests coming back positive) currently sits a 6.3% for the last 7-days for all South Central. I would give you data for SC2, but the province will not release testing data for subregions.
It is widely accepted nationally and internationally that above a 5% positivity there are numerous cases going undetected in the community. Undetected cases will only enhance the community spread of covid-19.
Today, South Central has a total of 171 active cases of covid-19, and 141 of those have been screened to be variants of concern.
This places South Central with the highest predominance of variants in all of Southern Saskatchewan with 82% of cases being likely B.1.1.7.
As you are aware, this is not the same pandemic it was months ago.
This third wave is the B.1.1.7 variant which spreads more easily (many scientific studies quoting at least 60% more transmissible) with greater severity of illness and chances of hospitalization or death (with studies showing at least 50% more adverse outcomes).
The measures that were in place for schools up to this point were largely sufficient, but the thousands of school outbreaks across this country in the last month driven by variants have shown regular masked instruction is not enough protection anymore.
Most school employees are not vaccinated, they have no protection from this deadlier variant in a time when more young and otherwise healthy adults are becoming hospitalized. I expect that requiring them to work in an unsafe environment is not only a social liability, but borders on becoming a legal one.
In Quebec news is spreading this morning that a 16-year-old has died from a covid variant.
Children are often spared the more severe damage from this virus, but not all of them are so fortunate.
We still do not know the long-term effects of infection, but neurological damage is a defining feature post-covid.
It is not just damage to the heart or lungs that is seen but increasing rate of mental illness caused by the damage from this virus.
It should not be surprising that covid can target the brain, one of the first things anyone knew was the loss of smell associated with infection.
When schools are in phase 4 instruction all school employees are safer. Our children are protected, and families can access federal funds through the Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit (CCRB).
Not only are people safer, but the downstream effects of phase 4 are that employers and government officials are more willing to use measures at their disposal such as enforcing work from home mandates and closing non-essential businesses which allows for even more federal assistance to reach families that need it.
Please, I implore you, reverse your decision to return to in-person instruction and remain in phase-4 until there is at least some indication that the trends of this 3rd wave have begun to reverse.
Right now, there is not a single scrap of evidence the situation is improving from when the decision was first made to go to phase 4.
Kyle Anderson
Ph.D. Assistant Professor and Undergraduate Chair Department of Biochemistry
Microbiology and Immunology College of Medicine University of Saskatchewan
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
SEE RELATED ARTICLE - Prairie South Given The Green Light To Re-Open Schools, April 12th
NOTE - The preceding letter is the opinion of the author. We encourage any and all to submit their views - either for or against - for publication if they so chose.