COVID-19 outbreak at École Catholique Cathédrale

Kingston Frontenac Lennox & Addington (KFL&A) Public Health has declared an outbreak of COVID-19 at École Catholique Cathédrale. As of Saturday, Dec. 19, 2020, KFL&A Public Health reports two active COVID-19 cases at the school. The declaration specifies that the outbreak has taken place at the school’s Main Campus.

“As per provincial Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education guidance, an outbreak is declared in a school once it has been determined that two individuals have tested positive with an epidemiological link (e.g., these children/staff could have become infected with COVID-19 at school, either from each other or a common source),” says a letter from the school’s Principal, Nienke Hoedeman, to the school community.

Hoedeman says that KFL&A Public Health staff have assessed the situation and that based on what is known at the current time, several outbreak measures at the school are being reviewed and strengthened.

Specifically, Hoedeman’s letter says, the school is reviewing and confirming measures such as the screening of children and staff, staying home when sick, proper cohorting (grouping and separation) of students and staff, cleaning and disinfecting surfaces, using personal protective equipment (e.g., masking, eye protection), ensuring proper hand hygiene, posting of signage for appropriate public health measures, and maintaining physical distancing.

“Working with the school, KFL&A Public Health will continue to monitor the situation and outbreak measures may be scaled up or down in response to the risk of transmission in the school,” the letter says.

KFL&A Public Health says it will inform individual students and staff if it is recommended they be tested for COVID-19. In the meantime, if a student has not been contacted directly by someone at KFL&A Public Health, the child does not have to be tested unless they are showing symptoms associated with COVID-19. KFL&A Public Health recommends that all students/staff who attend a school that is currently in an outbreak situation should self-monitor closely for symptoms of COVID-19 and, if symptoms develop, visit a COVID-19 Assessment Centre.

KFL&A Public Health advises that if a family decides to take a child who attends this school to an Assessment Centre for testing, it is important that they present this unique number (2241-2020-00277) to the testing centre staff so that their test results are prioritized as part of the declared outbreak and KFL&A Public Health can be notified as quickly as possible.