Chinese schools urged to step up daily health checks and work with authorities to help stop wave of respiratory illnesses
- The country has seen a wave of cases among children in recent weeks, something the authorities have blamed on multiple pathogens
- Parents and teachers express concern that some children are still coming to school when sick, helping to spread the disease further
In a directive issued on Monday, it also said schools should conduct risk assessments with local health departments to help fight the problem.
China has seen a spike in acute respiratory diseases among children since October. Paediatric departments across the country are reportedly being packed with young patients and forced to expand services to tackle the problem.
Zhang Ligang, 53, a teacher at a primary school in Wuhan in central China, said students at her school began calling in sick in mid-November, with more than 30 students absent from a school population of over 400 at the peak. She said that so far one class at the school has been closed.
“I feel the wave this year is less severe than last winter’s outbreak,” she said, referring to the surge of Covid-19 cases after Beijing abruptly relaxed zero-Covid restrictions.
