I hope everyone had the opportunity to spend time with (close) family and enjoy the gift of our outdoors this past Thanksgiving weekend.
The continued increase of new COVID-19 cases in the province and in the London area requires us to be ever more diligent in adhering to the health and safety practices of physical distancing (bubbling), masking and hand hygiene.
Thank you to everyone within our community, students, staff and parents for working with us and our local Health Units to do all we can to prevent the spread of COVID-19. We are very grateful to our local Medical Officers of Health, Dr. Joyce Lock, Dr. Chris Mackie and Dr. Alex Summers and their staff at the Middlesex-London Health Unit and Southwestern Public Health for their tireless work, support and guidance.
Should our Health Units notify us that a member of our community has tested positive we follow their guidance and direction which includes notification to parents, guardians and staff of the school affected. Health Unit investigators follow up with all close contacts to provide specific testing advice and next steps.
Our Health Units recommend the following to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 infection:
- Ensure close contact is limited to those in your household. If you live alone, consider only having close contact with one other household.
- Maintain two metres physical distance from anyone who is not in your household.
- Wear a mask no matter where you are, or what you are doing (leaving the house, going to the store, interacting with colleagues at work or in the breakroom).
- Avoid non-essential travel to the Greater Toronto Area, Ottawa, Quebec City and Montreal.
- Only visit an Assessment Centre to get tested if you have symptoms of COVID-19, have been contacted by the Health Unit or received notification through the COVID Alert app of close contact with a confirmed case.
- Wash your hands frequently with soap and water for 15-20 seconds or use a waterless hand sanitizer with at least 70 percent alcohol content.
- Cover coughs and/or sneezes with your sleeve or cough into your elbow.
- Clean high-touch areas, such as doorknobs in public spaces, frequently.
- Download the COVID Alert mobile app to be notified if you may have been exposed to COVID-19, and to let others know if you test positive for the virus.