Inter-sectoral Guidance No. 3668/HDLN:SGDDT-YT Hanoi 2021 prevention and control of COVID-19 when students return to school

THE HANOI PEOPLE’S COMMITTEE
DEPARTMENT
OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
- DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
-------

THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM
Independence - Freedom - Happiness
---------------

No. 3668/HDLN:SGDDT-YT

Hanoi, October 25, 2021

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

I

School cleaning and disinfection

1.

Organize outdoor clean-ups (clearing bushes, not allowing water to stagnate, covering water containers) and garbage collection.

2.

Disinfect the schools at least once by spraying on or wiping floors, walls (if possible), door handles, stair handrails, handrails, tables and chairs, toys, learning tools and objects in classrooms and function rooms.

3.

Disinfect vehicles transporting students (if any) by wiping their door handles, armrests, seats, windows, floor.

II

Prepare environmental sanitation, health facilities and equipment at the schools

4.

Ensure that there is enough hygienic drinking water, and each student has his/her own clean, hygienic cup.

5.

Make sure each student has his/her own face towel and handkerchief.

6.

Increase ventilation in the classrooms by opening doors and windows.

7.

Arrange hand-washing areas with soaps and clean water.

8.

Make sure the toilets are clean.

9.

Arrange enough garbage and waste containers with lids, put them in convenient locations and carry out daily collection and treatment of wastes.

10.

Ensure there are enough soap, disinfectant solution, and school cleaning equipment.

11.

Arrange medical rooms/health stations at the schools, which have all medical equipment as prescribed, and separate rooms to quarantine students, teachers, officials and school staff with symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath (in case of necessity).

12.

Prepare medical facemasks for students, teachers, officials and school staff with symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath.

13.

Contact the health stations of communes/wards/townships (hereinafter referred to as the commune-level health stations) or the local health agencies as prescribed for guidance and coordination in planning and implementing the anti-pandemic work at the schools.

III

Open training courses and disseminate information

14.

Open training courses to equip teachers, officials and school staff with knowledge of pandemic prevention and control, personal hygiene and environmental sanitation in schools, and detecting symptoms of COVID-19 disease as recommended by the health agencies.

15.

Train or guide school medical staff to strictly follow the COVID-19 prevention and control instructions at the schools and take the measures as prescribed in the list in Section 2, Part d of this Guidance.

16.

The schools notify their teachers, officials and school staff to measure their own body temperature and monitor their health at home. If they get fever, cough, or shortness of breath, they should proactively notify the schools and stay home to monitor their health, and at the same time go to the health facilities for health check-up, advice and treatment. Teachers, officials and school staff are not allowed to go to work if they are under medical quarantine at home or asked to monitor their health at home by the health agencies.

17.

Use electronic report cards or other communication systems (if any) to disseminate, guide students and parents the following contents:

a) Guide students to take measures to protect and monitor their health as well as to practice personal hygiene measures at home, at school, and on the way to school/back home.

b) Ask students and parents to monitor the students’ body temperature and symptoms of fever, cough, and shortness of breath before going to school. If students have symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath, they must stay at home, immediately inform the schools, and take them to health facilities for health check-up, advice and treatment. Students must stay at home if they are under medical quarantine at home or asked to monitor their health at home by health agencies (mandatory requirement).

c) Inform students and parents about measures to prevent and control the pandemic that have been taken and will continue to be implemented at the schools and dormitories so that students and parents can rest assured.

18.

Compile and display leaflets, posters and stickers in conspicuous places, develop messages that can be sent via electronic report cards or other communication systems (if available) to students and their parents about anti-pandemic measures, such as personal hygiene practice and other measures to be taken by the students.

IV

Assignment

19.

Establish Steering Committees for COVID-19 Prevention and Control at the schools.

20.

Assign specific responsibilities to each member of the working groups, teachers, officials and school staff.

21.

Appoint the school medical staff to act as advisers to the schools’ leaders and Steering Committees for COVID-19 Prevention and Control in planning, organizing, implementing, inspecting and monitoring the COVID-19 prevention and control at the schools.

22.

Notify and request service providers for the schools (food, cooking, student bus, selling food, environmental sanitation, etc.) to make commitments on safely providing their services in order to prevent the pandemic.

23.

Strengthen inspection work, develop regulations on cross-checking the implementation among classes, groups and teams (when necessary).

24.

Coordinate with local health facilities to organize vaccination drives against COVID-19 with the aim of vaccinating 100% of officials, teachers and employees.

25.

Register medical declaration QR codes for guests to make their medical declarations when they come to work with the schools

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

1.

Use electronic report cards or other communication systems (if any) to disseminate, guide students and parents the following contents:

a) Guide students to take measures to protect and monitor their health as well as to practice personal hygiene measures at home, at school, and on the way to school/back home as prescribed in the list of measures to be taken by the students.

b) Ask students and parents to monitor the students’ body temperature and symptoms of fever, cough, and shortness of breath before going to school. If students have symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath, they must stay at home, immediately inform the schools, and take them to health facilities for health check-up, advice and treatment. Students must stay at home if they are under medical quarantine at home or asked to monitor their health at home by health agencies (mandatory requirement).

c) Inform students and parents about measures to prevent and control the pandemic that have been taken and will continue to be implemented.

d) Organize the reception of students at the schools’ gates (shouldn’t let students’ parents enter the schools when picking up and dropping off students).

2.

Coordinate and closely contact students’ parents to monitor students’ health.

3.

Actively register for vaccination against COVID-19 to ensure being fully vaccinated with 2 doses

4.

Teachers measure their own body temperature and monitor their health at home. If they get fever, cough, or shortness of breath, they should proactively notify the schools and stay home to monitor their health, and at the same time go to the health facilities for health check-up, advice and treatment. 

Teachers, officials and school staff are not allowed to go to work if they are under medical quarantine at home or asked to monitor their health at home by the health agencies.

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

1.

Regularly rinse their mouths and throats with salt water or mouthwash.

2.

Keep their bodies warm.

3.

Do more exercises.

4.

Eat, drink well and ensure nutritious diets.

5.

Regularly wash their hands with clean water and soap at the following times: before and after eating, after going to the toilets, after going out, going home from school, after contacting with pets, when hands are dirty (avoid contact with domestic animals, wild animals).

6.

Cover their noses and mouths when coughing or sneezing (preferably with clean tissues, cloths or handkerchiefs, or sleeves to reduce the spread of respiratory secretions).

Throw used tissues in the trash cans and wash their hands.

7.

Do not touch their eyes, noses and mouths.

8.

Do not spit indiscriminately.

9.

Keep their houses clean and well ventilated, use fans instead of air conditioners.

10.

Deposit trash in the right places.

11.

Self-monitor their health by: for students at junior high schools and above, they shall self-measure body temperature; for pupils at preschools and primary schools, their parents shall check the body temperature for them. If they get fever, cough, or shortness of breath, they shall notify the schools immediately (via their homeroom teachers or the schools’ medical staff), stay home to monitor their health, wear facemasks, and go to health facilities for health check-up, advice and treatment.

13.

Avoid contact with people showing symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath.

14.

Register for vaccination against COVID-19 in accordance with the guidelines of the health agencies

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

I

Organization

1.

Arrange staff to pick up and deliver students at the schools’ gates.

2.

Provide regulations and instructions for school security guards to implement the contents under the list of “Measures to be taken by school security guards to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic”.

3.

Provide regulations and instructions for teachers to implement the contents under the list of “Measures to be taken by teachers when students return to school to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic”.

4.

Provide regulations and announcements for teachers to guide students and their parents to implement the contents under the list of “Measures to be taken by students at home to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic” and “Measures to be taken by students when they return to school to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic”.

5.

Do not organize gatherings, field trips, or picnics.

6.

Monday flag salute ceremony shall be held in the classrooms.

7.

Arrange alternating class times, breaks, and dismissals for different grades.

II

Disinfecting the schools and classrooms

8.

Once a day, after school, the schools shall disinfect the floors, walls (if possible), tables and chairs, toys, learning tools and other objects in classrooms and function rooms.

9.

Twice a day after school, in the morning and at the end of the day, the schools shall disinfect doorknobs, stair handrails, handrails, and elevator buttons.

10.

Once a day, the schools shall clean and disinfect hand-washing areas and toilets.

11

Limit the use of toys and learning tools made with non-sterile materials.

12.

For vehicles transporting students (if any): Before and after each trip to pick up and drop off students, their door handles, armrests, seats, windows, and floors shall be cleaned and disinfected.

13.

Arrange enough garbage and waste containers with lids, put them in convenient locations and carry out daily collection and treatment of wastes.

14.

If there are students, teachers, officials or school staff showing symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath, or suspected of infection, or tested positive for COVID-19, the schools must conduct disinfection in accordance with to the recommendations and instructions from local health agencies.

15.

Check daily and equip enough soap, disinfectant solution, and school cleaning equipment.

III

Monitor, care, supervise and handle health problems at the schools

16.

Assign school medical staff to be on duty for health care, pandemic prevention and control during the time students are at school.

17.

Ensure that school medical staff strictly follow the instructions for COVID-19 prevention and control at the schools as prescribed.

18.

Develop plans to purchase medical equipment for pandemic prevention and control, check daily and promptly replenish medical equipment as prescribed for the schools’ medical rooms/health stations.

19.

Request school medical staff to regularly contact the health stations of communes/wards/townships or local health agencies as prescribed to acquire guidance and support.

IV

Inspect, supervise and report

20.

The schools/the Steering Committees for COVID-19 Prevention and Control shall assign officers, teachers or employees to urge, inspect and supervise the implementation of the COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control at the schools.

21.

The schools/the Steering Committees for COVID-19 Prevention and Control shall assign staff to inspect and supervise the implementation of the contents under the lists of “Measures to be taken by teachers when students return to school to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic” and “Measures to be taken by medical staff when students return to school to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic”.

22.

The schools/the Steering Committees for COVID-19 Prevention and Control shall assign staff to inspect and supervise the disinfection and sanitation of the environment, classrooms, and vehicles transporting students (if any).

23.

The working groups shall compile reports on the schools’ COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis, and informs the schools’ leaders for them to timely take response measures.

No.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

1.

Pick up and deliver students.

2.

Instruct, check, and remind students to wash their hands with clean water and soap before entering classrooms.

3.

The first day when students return to school: Before the students enter their first lessons, the homeroom teachers shall announce the regulations and distribute to students copies of the list of “Measures to be taken by students at school to prevent and control the COVID-19 pandemic” and guide students to do it properly.

4.

Every day, before each lesson, the teachers shall take attendance and ask the students whether they get a fever, cough, shortness of breath, or fatigue or not (for preschool children, they should ask the children’s parents when picking up them). If yes, the teachers shall guide or immediately take the students (for preschool children, elementary school and junior high school students) to the school medical rooms/health stations for timely health check-up, monitoring and treatment.

5.

When teachers have symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath, they must immediately go to the schools’ medical rooms/health stations for health check-up, monitoring and quarantine. School medical staff shall immediately notify the commune-level health stations and the management agencies and provide medical facemasks and instructions on how to properly wear them for the above teachers, officials or school staff.

6.

Teachers shall participate in disinfection, environmental sanitation and the COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control as assigned by the schools.

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

1.

Regularly wash their hands with clean water and soap at the following times: before and after eating, after going to the toilets, when hands are dirty.

2.

Cover their noses and mouths when coughing or sneezing (preferably with clean tissues, cloths or handkerchiefs, or sleeves to reduce the spread of respiratory secretions).

Throw used tissues in the trash cans and wash their hands.

3.

Do not touch their eyes, noses and mouths.

4.

Do not share personal items such as cups, water bottles, face towels, handkerchiefs, pillows, blankets...

5.

Do not spit indiscriminately.

6.

Deposit trash in the right places.

7.

If they get fever, cough, or shortness of breath, they shall immediately notify their homeroom teachers.

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

1.

Contact the health stations of communes/wards/townships or the local health agencies as prescribed to acquire their guidance and coordination in planning and supporting the implementation of pandemic prevention and control at the schools.

2.

Advise the schools’ leaders to set up Steering Committees for COVID-19 Prevention and Control at the schools and clearly define the functions and duties to each member.

3.

Advise schools’ leaders to develop and implement plans on disinfection and environmental sanitation at the schools as well as to ensure environmental sanitation facilities and equipment.

4.

Advise the schools’ leaders to issue notices and forms of commitments between the schools and their service providers (food, cooking, school bus, food selling, environmental sanitation, ...) safely providing their services in order to prevent the pandemic.

5.

Advise schools’ leaders to arrange medical rooms/health stations at the schools with full medical equipment as prescribed in Joint Circular No. 13/2016/TTLT-BYT-BGDDT dated May 12, 2016 on regulations on healthcare activities in schools, and arrange separate areas to quarantine students, teachers, officials or school staff with symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath (in case of necessity).

6.

Daily check, supervise and remind teachers and students in each class, cleaning and disinfecting staff of the schools, and service providers to follow the lists of measures to be taken.

7.

Coordinate with teachers to monitor students’ health, detect and promptly respond to cases with symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath, or fatigue, and make records of them.

8.

When detecting students, teachers, officials of school staff showing symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath, immediately take them to the medical rooms for health check-up, monitoring, quarantine as well as immediately notify the commune-level health stations, the management agencies and the students’ parents. Medical staff must wear full personal protective equipment as prescribed and be responsible for providing medical facemasks and instructions on how to properly use facemasks for the above subjects.

9.

Daily check and ask the schools’ leaders to promptly replenish medical equipment as prescribed in the school medical rooms.

10.

Advise the schools’ leaders to assign officers, teachers or staff to urge, inspect and supervise the implementation of COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control at the school.

11.

Compile daily, weekly and monthly reports on the implementation of the schools’ COVID-19 prevention and control for the schools’ leaders/Steering Committees for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

1.

Do not allow students to go out of the schools during school hours.

2.

Do not allow unauthorized persons to enter the schools.

3.

When guests arrive at the schools, the security guards shall:

a) Report to the schools’ leaders.

b) Record the guests’ names, workplace/residence addresses, phone numbers, date and time they enter and leave the schools, and the name of the school staff working with the guests; Guide the guests to the right working rooms, not allow them to visit other areas, which is not necessary.

4.

When security guards show symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath, they must immediately go to the schools’ medical rooms/health stations to be checked, monitored and handled promptly.

5.

School security guards shall measure their body temperature and monitor their health at home. If they get fever, cough, or shortness of breath, they should proactively notify the schools and stay home to monitor their health, and at the same time go to the health facilities for health check-up, advice and treatment. School security guards are not allowed to go to work if they are under medical quarantine at home or asked to monitor their health at home by the health agencies.

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

1.

Do not allow cooking in the rooms.

2.

Disinfect at least once a day the floors, walls (if possible), tables and chairs, objects in the dorm rooms and service areas/canteens.

3.

Disinfect at least 01-02 times/day for positions with frequent contact, such as doorknobs, stair handrails, handrails, and elevator buttons (if any).

4.

Clean and disinfect hand-washing areas and toilets at least once a day.

5.

Increase ventilation in dorm rooms by opening doors and windows, using fans instead of air conditioners

6.

Organize outdoor clean-ups (clearing bushes, not allowing water to stagnate, covering water containers).

7.

Make sure the toilets are clean.

8.

Arrange enough garbage and waste containers with lids, put them in convenient locations and carry out daily collection and treatment of wastes.

9.

Ensure there are enough soaps, disinfectant solution, personal hygiene equipment.

10.

Arrange medical rooms/health stations at the dormitories, which have all medical equipment as prescribed, and separate rooms to quarantine students, teachers, officials and school staff with symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath (in case of necessity).

11.

Contact the commune-level health stations or local health agency as prescribed to acquire their guidance and coordination in planning and implementing the pandemic prevention and control at the dormitories.

12.

Regularly check and urge the implementation of dormitory rules and the COVID-19 pandemic prevention and control regulations.

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

1.

Take suspects of infection to separate quarantine areas in medical rooms or other areas arranged by the schools. Limit their contact with other people around, avoid close contact with them in less than 1 meter.

2.

Medical staff/teachers concurrently doing school health work must wear medical facemasks, gloves, and medical protective clothing (such medical protective clothing must be changed before leaving the medical rooms or quarantine areas, and washed with detergent or soap before reused, do not wash them together with other fabric clothing). Provide the suspects with medical facemasks and instructions on how to properly wear them.

3.

Inquiring the suspects’ history of exposure:

- For children, high school students and trainees: Invite their parents or guardians to the schools to participate in the inquiries for their history of epidemiological exposure, then take response actions.

- Officials, teachers and employees shall be inquired directly

- Inquire the history of epidemiological exposure and take response actions:

+ Within the previous 14 days, whether they have returned from pandemic-hit areas as announced by the Ministry of Health (both at home and abroad) or not; if yes, they shall declare the locations specifically.

+ Within 14 days after having close contact (living in the same house, studying in the same class, living together, working in the same room, having direct contact within a distance of ≤ 1-2m, traveling in the same vehicle...) with people who have returned from pandemic-hit areas as announced by the Ministry of Health, or those who are suspected of infection or tested positive for COVID-19.

+ If they have none of the above-mentioned epidemiological risk factors, Section 4 shall prevail.

+ If they have one of the above-mentioned epidemiological risk factors, Section 5 shall prevail.

- Consult with medical staff of the communes or wards, or the local health agencies as prescribed to confirm the history of epidemiological exposure. If necessary, ask from assistance of regional, district-, town- or city-level medical staff.

4

Response measures to be taken after inquiring the history of epidemiological exposure:

If the suspects have no epidemiological risk factors, the following response measures shall be taken:

- Treat the symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath. If necessary, the school medical staff shall take the teachers and students or coordinate with parents to take the children and students to the nearest health facilities for timely treatment.

- Record information in the students’ health books as prescribed in Joint Circular No. 13/2016/TTLT-BYT-BGDDT dated May 12, 2016 of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education and Training on regulations on healthcare activities in schools (the sample health books were already sent to the institutions).

5

If the suspects have epidemiological risk factors:

- Notify the local health agencies to acquire their coordination in responding to the cases suspected of having epidemiological risk factors, or showing symptoms of fever, cough, or shortness of breath at the schools.

- Transport the suspects to health facilities for quarantine and treatment.

- School medical staff shall coordinate with the commune/ward/township-level health stations or local competent health agencies to take the students/teachers to health facilities as prescribed for quarantine and treatment. The transportation of the above-mentioned students/teachers must comply with regulations on prevention of contagion.

6

Response measures to be taken at the schools:

- If there are cases of close contact or other related cases, the instructions of the local competent health agencies shall be followed.

- Notify all teachers, students, and their parents to make the students leave school immediately until the schools update new notices.

- Environmental disinfection: disinfect and treat the environment surrounding the outbreak in line with the guidelines of the Ministry of Health.

NO.

MEASURES TO BE TAKEN

1.

Priority shall be given to choosing quarantine rooms that have self-contained toilets.

2

Prevention the contagion by well ventilating, not using air conditioning; daily cleaning the floors, doorknobs and surfaces of objects in the rooms with disinfectant solutions or common detergents. Make sure the toilets are clean.

3

At the door of each room, there must be a place to wash hands with soap, or hand sanitizers for convenient use.

4

Arrange waste containers with lids. Collect and contain the used facemasks, towels, tissues of quarantined people in waste containers. If they have epidemiological risk factors, their wastes shall be collected, transported and treated as infectious wastes in accordance with the instructions of the commune-level health stations; Collect other household wastes in normal trash cans.

5

Prepare basic medical equipment as prescribed.

6

Work out rules in the quarantine areas: limiting unauthorized people to the quarantine areas as much as possible; ensuring security and safety; not organizing concentrated meals in quarantine areas; provide meals for quarantined people and ensure food safety.

NO.

Name of assessment criteria

Fulfilled

Unfulfilled

I

BEFORE STUDENTS RETURN TO SCHOOL

Criterion 1

Ensure facilities and equipment for environmental hygiene, food safety, and health work at the schools (body thermometers, soaps or antiseptic solution, drinking water, places to wash hands with clean water) with due attention paid to issues related to people with disabilities.

Criterion 2 

Develop educational plans suitable to the actual conditions of the schools and local pandemic situations.

Criterion 3

100% of preschool children, students of general education (collectively referred to as students), administrators, teachers, staff, and school workers (collectively referred to as school staff and teachers) make their medical declarations and measure their body temperature at home before going to school.

Criterion 4

100% of students, staff, and teachers wear facemasks properly on the way to school.

Criterion 5

Clean and disinfect the schools, classrooms, school supplies and transportation vehicles (if any) in accordance with the instructions of the health sector.

Criterion 6

There are school medical staff, quarantine rooms, medical rooms in accordance with regulations, and school psychologists are employed.

Criterion 7

Organize dissemination drives and training courses for students, school staff and teachers on anti-pandemic procedures and develop plans in response to cases of getting fever, cough, or shortness of breath, or being suspected of COVID-19 infection at the schools.

Criterion 8

100% of school staff, teachers and employees are fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 with 02 doses.

II

WHEN STUDENTS GO TO SCHOOL

Criterion 9

Ensure 100% of students, school staff and teachers have their body temperature checked before entering the classrooms.

Criterion 10

Ensure 100% of preschool and primary pupils are picked up at the school gates.

Criterion 11

Keep social distancing in and out of classrooms, working rooms, function rooms, dorm rooms at the schools in accordance with the Government’s regulations.

Criterion 12

Fully comply with the regulations on disinfecting and cleaning contact surfaces, hand-washing areas, toilets, vehicles transporting students after each trip as prescribed, wearing facemasks properly during school hours.

Criterion 13

Fully inspect, review and timely replenish soaps, antiseptic solution and other necessary items for pandemic prevention and control in preparation for the next lessons.

Criterion 14

The schools’ Steering Committees for Pandemic Prevention and Control strictly inspect, supervises, urge and remind the implementation of regulations on the COVID-19 prevention and control.

III

WHEN STUDENTS LEAVE THE SCHOOLS

Criterion 15

Ensure 100% of students, school staff and teachers keep a reasonable distance and wear facemasks when returning home from the schools.

Criterion 16

Ensure 100% of preschool and primary school pupils are delivered to their home by the schools.

DEPARTMENT
OF HEALTH

FOR THE DIRECTOR
DEPUTY DIRECTOR



Vu Cao Cuong

DEPARTMENT
OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
FOR THE DIRECTOR
DEPUTY DIRECTOR



Pham Xuan Tien