Read on Twitter
I have been off Twitter over the holidays in order to spend more quality time with my family. However, on the eve of my return to the office (our basement 
) I am returning to Twitter for some straight talk about #ON #COVID, #schools, and our current reality 
/1
) I am returning to Twitter for some straight talk about #ON #COVID, #schools, and our current reality /1
In July 2020, @NishaOttawa, @AshTuite and I wrote an article for the Globe and Mail about getting kids back to school after a prolonged closure by putting the right tools in place. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-we-can-get-children-back-to-school-full-time-if-we-put-the-right/ /2
Schools should be the first to open and last to close because of the serious harm that prolonged school closures have on children, families, and communities. In July, we said that "It is the duty of Ontarioâs government to prioritize school reopening plans...". /3
However, the plan put forth by @fordnation and @Sflecce in August had significant IPAC deficits. To compensate, we said that we needed to keep community transmission low in order to minimize the risk of transmission within schools. /4
This was especially important since the school plan was lacking in so many ways (no ability to distance, large class sizes, poor ventilation, mixing of cohorts, a lack of staff cohorting etc.). So...our first line of defence had to be keeping cases out of schools. /5
In fact, @AshTuite put together a great online tool to help us think about how many school introductions we might expect to see based on the number of documented COVID cases reported https://art-bd.shinyapps.io/school_entry/ . Turns out you get LOTS of introductions. /6
So how do we reconcile what many of us consider to be a weak plan with the @Sflecce assertion that schools are safe and transmission in schools is not happening? Well to be honest we just don't know because we are not doing enough testing, contact tracing, or phylogenetics. /7
In fact, in several interviews during fall 2020 I have discussed the uncertainty related to the statement that transmission doesn't happen in schools here: https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2020/12/01/you-cant-see-them.html?rf /8
and here: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/whitecoat/what-do-i-need-to-know-about-schools-and-the-current-spike-of-covid-19-1.5816955 /9
We now find ourselves in a situation where community transmission is raging, our healthcare system is buckling despite the best efforts and warnings of our healthcare leaders, LTC is literally on fire with COVID and our vaccine roll-out is slow as molasses. /10
We also have a novel variant B.1.1.7 that appears both more infectious and like it is causing more infections in young people https://www.imperial.ac.uk/media/imperial-college/medicine/mrc-gida/2020-12-31-COVID19-Report-42-Preprint-VOC.pdf /11
Again, the harms of closing schools are significant but the harms of keeping schools open are also significant under a backdrop of raging community transmission and healthcare collapse. /12
As an epidemiologist and parent, I know that the idea of closing schools again is absolutely heartbreaking. @fordnation had one job and that was to keep community transmission low so schools and businesses could function. Once again, they have failed. /13
I do not think that the current ON school IPAC plan is sufficient to address the sheer number of school introductions we will see on a daily basis given our current #ON trajectory as of today (January 3, 2021) /14
In the fall, as cases climbed @NishaOttawa , @AshTuite and I wrote a second opinion piece about how to improve school IPAC given increasing community transmission but no newspaper was interested (probably because we just keep saying the same thing 
) /15
) /15
Reopening ON schools on Jan 11, 2021 is reckless and dangerous. The solutions feel like Groundhog Day but we need: 1) #COVIDZero, 2) easy, accessible, non-invasive testing, 3)smaller classes, 4) better ventilation, 5) outdoor ed, 6)ed staff cohorts /16
As I wrap up an epic thread, I will say that I will remember very clearly who led us into this situation and when it comes time to vote I hope that you will as well. #onpoli /17 /end
