Announcements
Advisory to Parents: Precautionary Measures In Preschools - 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV)
03 Feb 2020
Dear Parents
PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES IN PRESCHOOLS – 2019 NOVEL CORONAVIRUS (2019-nCoV)
In light of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) situation, the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) and preschools
have implemented precautionary measures to keep the preschool community – preschool staff, infants and children - healthy and safe.
2 Preschools are required to implement the following precautionary measures:
☑Temperature screening and health checks
- Continue with health checks and temperature screening for all children, staff and visitors.
- Monitor the health of children and staff, and advise them to see a doctor immediately if they are sick.
- If the child is unwell, advise parents/guardians to let the child stay at home to rest and return to preschool only when the child has fully recovered.
- Advise parents and visitors with a fever and/or respiratory/flu-like symptoms (e.g. running nose, cough) to not enter the preschool, to prevent the risk of infection to infants and children.
☑ Ensure good personal hygiene
- Cover their mouth and nose with a tissue when sneezing or coughing, and to throw away the tissue immediately into a bin.
- Encourage children to wash hands frequently with soap, especially before eating or handling food, after toilet visits, or when hands are dirtied by respiratory secretions after coughing or sneezing
- Not to share food/drinks, eating utensils, toothbrushes or towels with others.
☑ Ensure good environmental hygiene
- Keep the preschool clean.
- Clean frequently touched surfaces, toys and commonly shared items at least daily and when contaminated by nasal or oral secretions.
- Ensure supplies such as hand soap, tissues and paper towels are available for children and staff’s use.
☑ Travel declarations for all preschool staff and children
- Advise staff and families to defer all travel to Hubei Province and all non- essential travel to Mainland China.
- Obtain travel declarations and monitor travel plans for preschool staff and children on an ongoing basis. This is so that the preschool can provide the necessary assistance to facilitate leave of absence for relevant children and staff.
☑ Leave of Absence for all preschool staff and children returning from
Mainland China
- Implement 14-day Leave of Absence for all preschool staff and children returning from Mainland China: i. on and from 28 January 2020, ii. as well as those who returned within the last 14 days prior to 28 January, i.e. 14 January to 27 January 2020.
☑ Leave of Absence for all children with any household member who is
on Home Quarantine Order
- Implement 14-day Leave of Absence for children with any household member who is on Home Quarantine Order.
- This is in view that young children may be less able to take the necessary precautions, while staying with household members under home quarantine.
- Parents should inform your child’s preschool immediately if your child is living in a household with person(s) on Home Quarantine Order.
3 ECDA and the relevant agencies are monitoring the novel coronavirus situation very closely. We will continue to review the measures and step up where necessary, to ensure the health and wellbeing of all children and staff in preschools.
4 We seek your cooperation and support to the preschool by adhering to the measures. Let’s work together to give our children a safe and conducive learning environment.
Thank you.
Early Childhood Development Agency
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