Vaccination of schoolchildren is progressing, but normal face-to-face return will be defined once the process is finished

Of the more than 30,000 students in Zone 8 who are between 6 and 11 years old, about 7,000 have received the first dose against COVID-19 in the first two days of the process for this age range.

Attendance at schools to receive the vaccine has been on the rise, because at the start of the process not all parents had given authorizations.

Carlos Vega, rector of the Ciudad de Tulcán Educational Unit, explained that they started the first day with 114 immunized children, according to the income of the vaccine acceptance form by the parents, however this figure has been increasing.

“The parents saw that we have put the entire contingent to vaccinate, from the specialized personnel, the organization, as well as the personnel in the recreational area to accompany the children in this process, it is necessary that the return to classes”, commented the rector.

Yadira Blackman, Zone 8 undersecretary of education, indicated that there is a lot of openness to the process on the part of families and the educational community. “The acceptance of parents is very good, because they are very interested in them returning to classes, and the only way is for them to get vaccinated to return safely,” he said.

The official explained that in more than the educational centers at the zonal level, children can also go to the airport vaccination center, or to the 115 health centers in Zone 8 to access the COVID-16 vaccine from the age of 6.

Mothers of families who were in the centers yesterday indicated that it is important that children have access to the vaccine because they are more exposed in the various activities that they develop from going out to play, or going to courses or going to classes in a blended way.

But just as there are parents who agree to have their children vaccinated, others are still in doubt. A woman who received the call for her son to be vaccinated in a school in the north of Guayaquil commented that she did not send him due to doubts about the effects of the vaccine.

The National Emergency Operations Committee (COE) I would analyze in three weeks if only those children vaccinated against the coronavirus could assist to classes in person.

Asked if it could be implemented any requirement for attending classes physically In the kids, Juan Zapata, president of the national COE, replied that the theme It will be analyzed when the vaccination of school-age children and youth is completed.

Vaccination of children 6 to 11 years with 11 months and 29 days began on October 18 while for children of 5 years to 5 years with 11 months and 29 days would begin at the end of November.

According to the Ministry of Education, at the national level there are 2′010,000 students of the national educational system who are between 6 and 11 years old.

The Minister of Education, María Brown, said that once you can have the security and after epidemiological controls and the monitoring carried out by the Ministry of Public Health they will be able to make decisions to change the method that is being used so far.

Mentioned that for now the educational continuity plans are followed where each institution voluntarily present a plan.

Third dose of vaccine against COVID-19 is already applied to health personnel in Ecuador

Meanwhile, the Minister of Health, Ximena Garzón, pointed out that the moment when the herd immunity classes can be reactivated. He added that it is a risk to send the child in person to school if he is not protected with a vaccine.

“We cannot impose, we cannot force. Of course we try to inform, we try to educate the population so that adults are vaccinated and also so that they vaccinate their children so that they can have a safe return to school, ”said Garzón.

For Francisco Pérez Pazmiño, dean of the School of Medicine from the Catholic University of Ecuador, children have the right to vaccination, but it must be considered that there is a very high percentage of the adult population, especially those economically active, who have not received the vaccine.

Although I am not against vaccinating children it seems to me that you have to establish priorities and that would be the priority, the economically active population that needs to receive their first dose, ”said Pérez Pazmiño.

He suggested, as applied in universities, a hybrid modality, that is, on the one hand, students voluntarily attend in person, especially of a practical kind, but at the same time a transmission via virtual of the class for those who for whatever reason cannot attend or do not want to attend.

In Guayaquil, the downward trend in confirmed cases and deaths from COVID-19 continues

According to the Ministry of Education, the 32% from educational institutions, At the national level, they have a permit to use the facilities, maintaining biosecurity measures.

Approximately 420,900 students have attended the classrooms in person, from the June 7th and have been reported 21 cases of coronavirus, which have recovered and, according to Brown, there have been no community infections that have started in educational entities.

For the head of Education, vaccination is other epidemiological control measure That helps to reduce the risks of possible infections and thus make the return to face-to-face classes increasingly safer and to advance in that return plan. (I)