Members of the State and Krishna district chapters of Indian Academy of Paediatrics (IAP) and AP wing of the National Neonatology Forum (NNF) on Sunday said cases from China suggested that children could contract the coronavirus as much as an adult or the elderly but they experience milder or no symptoms. The need, therefore, was to safeguard them in schools and at homes, they said, addressing a press conference.
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Citing UNICEF and WHO guidelines to protect children, they said children should be provided with information about how to protect themselves, steps should be taken to promote hand-washing and other hygiene practices, clean and disinfect school buildings, especially water and sanitation facilities, and increase airflow and ventilation in classrooms.
They also urged parents and teachers to monitor children’s health and keep them home if they were ill, encourage children to ask questions and express their concerns and cough or sneeze into a tissue and avoid touching their face, eyes, mouth and nose.
They said in Andhra Pradesh, the government had set up screening centre at SVIMS in Tirupati and planned to open two more at Vijayawada and Kakinada. Isolation and quarantine places were opened in Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and Tirupati.
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State IAP president P. Durga Prasad, secretary P. Anil Kumar, senior paediatrician R. Venkateswara Rao, president of the Krishna district unit of IAP P.S.N. Murthy, secretary T. Sandeep, president of State NNF N. Suryanarayana and secretary P.V. Rama Rao were present.