Concern at school closures over noroviris outbreak

Concern at school closures over noroviris outbreak

4 December 2019

AN outbreak of the winter vomiting bug known as the norovirus has prompted calls for people to exercise caution.

Rowallane councillor, Kathryn Owen, has revealed that her husband and two children contracted the debilitating bug which also swept through Killinchy Primary School with half of its pupils off ill last week.

Cllr Owen — a former RAF medic who is currently studying a part-time PhD in cardiovascular medicine in collaboration with Ulster University and Southern Health Trust — described the current strain of the norovirus that also causes diarrhoea, as “particularly bad”.

She said that a number of Northern Ireland schools have been closed in order for deep cleans to be carried out and is currently checking on people in the Rowallane area to ensure that they have enough food and everyday essentials in case they catch the bug.

“The sound medical advice is to stay indoors for at least 48 hours after the last symptoms have gone,” said Cllr Owen.

“Obviously, this means people may be short on supplies as the illness comes on suddenly and people may not think to check on the elderly who could be very ill. Given my medical background, I feel that it is important to raise this issue and highlight the need for community support.”

It has been reported that nine schools across the Province closed last week due to the outbreak of the winter vomiting bug.

Killinchy Primary School principal Chris Currie described the situation as “unprecedented”.

He continued: “I have been a principal for seven years and a teacher for nine before that and I’ve never experienced anything like this at all. The biggest problem now that we are facing is that it’s starting to roll into the staff.

“We have five teaching staff and three classroom assistants sick so it’s had an impact on trying to merge classes, get sub teachers in place and try to make sure that some form of education continues.”

Mr Currie said the caretaker and the cleaning team had been rotating their cleaning products, making sure all surfaces were wiped down. He also said that the school had changed all of the soaps in the toilets.

The principal also revealed that everything the school would normally do had been “parked” to try to cope with the crisis and stop the bug from spreading.”

Mr Currie also confirmed that a number of pupils due to sit the AQE transfer tests had fallen sick, with several missing the last two papers.

The principal said that the school is looking at what he described as “special measures to try and provide for those children come results time.”

Dr Philip Veal, from the Public Health Agency, said that schools had been hit harder by the bug this winter.

“It is fair to say there is perhaps more within schools at this stage than we have seen in previous years,” he said.

“But every year we do see transmission within schools and our messages are the same. Stay off school if you’re sick, wash your hands and together we can stop the spread of this infection.”