The first bell, finally without a mask after more than two years of obligation, rang on Monday 5 September for 90,000 South Tyrolean children and young people, a forerunner throughout Italy for the new school year. However, this is a sort of “probation”, because with cases of positivity in the classroom, the obligation of Ffp2 as a preventive measure would be triggered again. The reopening of the school will generally be a stress test on the contagion front. Which will hopefully continue to remain as low as it currently is, despite the return to class of millions of students
Following, on 12 September it will be the turn of Abruzzo, Basilicata, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Trentino, Piedmont, Veneto and Lombardy. On 13 September it will be the turn of Campania. On September 14 in Calabria, Liguria, Marche, Puglia, Sardinia, Umbria and Molise. Following the students of Lazio, Emilia Romagna and Tuscany on September 15th. Last to return to class were those of Sicily and Valle d’Aosta on 19 September.
Ciccozzi: at school without a mask is an experiment, in 20 days check
“We decided to take off the mask at school and now let’s see what happens, it’s a sort of experiment which, however, requires an epidemiological check in 20 days. Let us remember that the problem is not the children but the fact that at home they can have fragile family members and very old grandparents. They will also all be vaccinated but a certain degree of risk remains ». So Massimo Ciccozzi, head of the Medical Statistics and Epidemiology Unit of the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery of the Bio-Medico Campus of Rome, spoke to beraking latest news Health on what was stated by the infectious specialist Matteo Bassetti: “if the obligation to wear a mask returns to school, I take to the streets with the boys ».
Rising contagion risk
“Let’s say that with the new school protocol we have calculated risks but there is always a certain degree of unpredictability in Covid – adds Ciccozzi – I don’t think we will have a peak of 100 thousand cases in the autumn, but in any case there will be moments of recovery of the infections that will be managed, for this reason I say that it is also okay to remove the mask at school but it is always necessary to be cautious and to carry out an epidemiological analysis to prevent the situation from getting out of hand “.
At school even if cold but with a mask
It should be remembered that you can go to school even if cold but the respiratory symptoms must be “mild” and the general conditions are good and without fever. In this case, the Ffp2 mask must be worn. The masks are also provided for students and for all fragile personnel in possession of the necessary certification. The mask is therefore no longer mandatory except for students and school staff at risk.