To parents and guardians,

Through your hard work and willingness to buy in to public health guidance over the past two months, we have made real progress in suppressing the most recent wave of COVID-19. This progress has meant that primary and post-primary schools and the wider provision of childcare can now commence on a phased basis.

The importance of schools for the overall health and wellbeing of children cannot be overstated, and the risk of COVID-19 has been carefully weighed against the very real harm that can be caused by sustained school closures. Schools are at the heart of our communities and they play a fundamental role in the social lives and wellbeing of our children; this is particularly true for children who have special educational needs, are disadvantaged or who may have been disproportionately impacted by school closures over the last year.

Our priority is to ensure a safe return to schools for students, their families and school staff, which is why we have recommended a phased return to in-school learning.

In making this recommendation, the NPHET’s most significant concern is that it will be taken as a signal by parents and wider society that other forms of household mixing, and mobility are now acceptable.

We cannot afford for this to happen at this time. Despite the progress we have made, COVID-19 is still circulating at high levels in our communities. We must do all we can individually and collectively to ensure that the reopening of schools results in the minimum possible upward pressure on the reproduction number.

Please avoid congregating at school gates over the coming weeks. Please do not have play dates or organise after school activities which involve household mixing. And please continue to work from home unless essential. It is only through your continued buy-in to these measures that we can ensure that our children will get back to school and then stay back in school.

I know these are difficult requests. We all – adults and children alike – want to meet up with our friends and neighbours and get back to our old routines. And we will get there.

We now have three very effective vaccines with, hopefully, three more on the way. Over the coming weeks, older people, and those at high or very high risk of severe disease will be vaccinated and we will see substantial increases in supply from April onwards.  And we are already seeing the very positive impact of vaccines in our nursing homes and among our healthcare workers. If we can combine this rollout with a continued suppression of the disease through March and April, we will have many more options in terms of easing of measures and should be able to provide much greater levels of certainty to people about the months ahead.

Finally, I want to take this opportunity to thank you for all you have done to keep your family and our communities safe over the last year. I also want to thank all teachers, principals and school staff who have worked so hard to ensure measures have been put in place to limit the risk of spread of COVID-19 in schools. It has been this kind of work, done quietly and by the majority, which has underpinned our national response to COVID-19 and which, ultimately, will see us through to brighter days ahead.

Kind regards

Dr. Ronan Glynn,

Deputy Chief Medical Officer,

Department of Health.


A thuismitheoir/chaomhnóir, a chara,

A bhuí leis an obair chrua a chuir tú isteach agus lena thoilteanaí a bhí tú cloí leis an gcomhairle sláinte poiblí thar an dá mhí seo a chuaigh thart, d’éirigh linn fíordhul chun cinn a dhéanamh ar an ráig is déanaí de COVID-19 a chur faoi chois. Mar gheall ar an dul chun cinn sin, is féidir le bunscoileanna, le hiar-bhunscoileanna agus le soláthraithe cúram leanaí i gcoitinne tosú ar a gcuid oibre ar bhonn céimnithe anois.

Ní féidir áibhéil a dhéanamh faoina thábhachtaí atá scoileanna maidir le sláinte agus folláine fhoriomlán leanaí, agus rinneadh an riosca a bhaineann le COVID-19 a mheas go cúramach in aghaidh an fhíordhochair a dhéanann dúntaí marthanacha scoile. Tá scoileanna i gcroílár ár bpobal agus imríonn siad ról bunúsach i saol sóisialta agus folláine shóisialta ár leanaí; tá an méid sin fíor go háirithe i gcás leanaí a bhfuil riachtanais speisialta oideachais acu, atá faoi mhíbhuntáiste nó a ndearna na dúntaí scoile thar an mbliain seo a chuaigh thart difear díréireach dóibh.

Is é an tosaíocht atá againn filleadh sábháilte ar an scoil a chinntiú do dhaltaí, dá dteaghlach agus do bhaill foirne scoile. Is é sin an fáth ar mholamar filleadh céimnithe ar an bhfoghlaim ionscoile.

Agus an moladh sin á dhéanamh aici, is é an príomhábhar imní atá ag an bhFoireann Náisiúnta Éigeandála Sláinte Poiblí (NPHET) ná go measfaidh teaghlaigh agus an mhórshochaí gurb inghlactha anois atá cineálacha eile measctha agus soghluaisteachta idir teaghlaigh.

Ní hacmhainn dúinn é sin a dhéanamh an babhta seo. Beag beann ar an dul chun cinn a rinneamar, bíonn COVID-19 fós á leathadh go mór inár bpobail. Ní mór dúinn ár seacht ndícheall a dhéanamh ar bhonn aonair agus ar bhonn comhchoiteann araon chun a chinntiú go dtiocfaidh an laghdú is lú is féidir ar an uimhir atáirgthe de bharr athoscailt na scoileanna.

Ná cruinnigh ag geataí scoile thar na seachtainí atá le teacht. Ná bíodh aon choinní súgartha agat agus ná heagraigh gníomhaíochtaí iarscoile ina meascfaidh teaghlaigh dhifriúla le chéile. Agus lean ort ag obair ón mbaile, ach amháin i gcás go bhfuil sé riachtanach go n-oibreofá áit éigin eile. Is tríd an tacaíocht leanúnach a thabharfaidh tú do na bearta sin, agus tríd an tacaíocht sin amháin, is féidir linn a chinntiú go bhfillfidh ár leanaí ar scoil agus go bhfanfaidh siad ar scoil ansin.

Tá a fhios agam gur iarrataí deacra iad sin. Táimid go léir – aosaigh agus leanaí araon – ag iarraidh teacht le chéile lenár gcuid cairde agus comharsan arís agus filleadh ar an ngnáthshaol. Agus tarlóidh sé sin.

Tá trí vacsaín an-éifeachtach againn anois agus tá dóchas ann go bhfuil trí cinn eile ar an mbealach. Thar na seachtainí atá le teacht, vacsaíneofar daoine scothaosta agus daoine atá i mbaol ard nó i mbaol an-ard galar trom a fhulaingt agus feicfimid méaduithe substaintiúla sa soláthar ó mhí Aibreáin ar aghaidh.  Tá tionchar an-dearfach na vacsaíní á fheiceáil againn cheana féin inár dtithe altranais agus i measc ár n-oibrithe cúram sláinte. Más féidir linn na vacsaíní a rolladh amach agus leanúint leis an ngalar a chur faoi chois le linn mhí an Mhárta agus mhí Aibreáin, beidh cuid mhór roghanna eile againn maidir le bearta a mhaolú agus ba cheart go mbeimis in ann i bhfad níos mó cinnteachta a thabhairt do dhaoine faoi na míonna atá romhainn.

Mar fhocal scoir, ba mhaith liom an deis seo a thapú chun buíochas a ghabháil leat as gach rud a rinne tú chun do theaghlach agus ár bpobail a choinneáil sábháilte thar an mbliain seo a chuaigh thart. Ba mhaith liom buíochas a ghabháil freisin leis na múinteoirí, na príomhoidí agus na baill foirne scoile uile a d’oibrigh chomh crua sin chun a chinntiú gur cuireadh bearta i bhfeidhm ar mhaithe le srian a chur leis an mbaol go leathfaí COVID-19 i scoileanna. Chuir an tromlach an cineál oibre sin isteach go ciúin. Bhí an obair sin mar bhonn agus thaca ag ár bhfreagairt náisiúnta do COVID-19 agus is mar thoradh uirthi a bhainfimid amach na laethanta geala atá romhainn.

Le dea-mhéin

An Dr Ronan Glynn,

Leas-Phríomhoifigeach Míochaine,

An Roinn Sláinte.


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