NPHC: Importance of Getting Kids Back to Safe Schools
Very soon students will open school doors again, so it is very important that safe and healthy conditions for education were ensured. Normally, basic preparations to ensure safe and healthy conditions are conducted during the children's holidays, and with summer drawing to a close, specialists from the National Public Health Centre (NPHC) reiterate the essential requirements set out in Lithuanian Hygiene Norm HN 21:2017 'School for general education curriculum. General Health Safety Requirements'.
NPHC supervises schools
Schools must have a permit-hygiene passport (PHP), i.e. a document certifying that the operating conditions meet the public health safety requirements . You can check whether your chosen educational institution has PHP in the License Information System.
NPHC supervises (controls) how schools comply with these requirements. In 2022, NPHC specialists conducted 577 inspections in schools. 32 % of inspections disclosed violations.
Inappropriate fittng-out of premises poses a threat of injury or trauma, therefore it is very important that floor covering in school premises is smooth but not slippery, and the equipment used in physical training lessons is in good working order. It is also very important to create conditions for children to observe personal hygiene, hence sanitary facilities must be kept in good repair at all times.
Educational institutions may check how they meet the requirements by using the control questionnaire throughout the year.
Annual health checkup
All children under 18 years of age and older students who study in schools for general education must have a preventive health check-up once a year. A student's health certificate is valid for one year from the date of its completion. A new certificate can be issued before the validity of the previously issued certificate expires. Annual preventive health check-up of children helps to detect health disorders in time, encourages to adjust lifestyle and take into account the child's health needs in the educational process.
Please note that annual health check-up is mandatory not only for students, but also for the school staff, and if they feel the symptoms of cold or other infectious diseases, they should contact a medical centre and not participate in the educational process.
Hand hygiene
Hand hygiene is one of the main preventive measures that help protect oneself and everyone around from spread of infections, therefore uninterrupted access to hot and cold water as well as personal hygiene products (soap, disposable towels or a hand dryer) near the washrooms should be ensured. In educational institutions, hot water and its preparation must meet the requirements set out in the Lithuanian Hygiene Norm HN 136:2023 "Hot water public health safety requirements".
Room ventilation
Classrooms in schools should be ventilated naturally (by opening windows) or by using ventilation systems. It is important not to forget to ventilate the classroom after every lesson. When using natural ventilation, it is important to check whether the windows and air vents open, to assess the condition of other natural ventilation channels, and when using an installed mechanical ventilation system, its operation and condition of the filters should be checked.
If repair works were carried out in the school during the summer and they have not yet been completed, then the rooms in which they are carried out must be isolated from other rooms, and students should not be admitted there.
Last updated: 31-08-2023
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