Doctor Asks: Should We Be Re-opening Schools?

This is a really complex but immensely important topic. Written and shot on 25th Feb with the most up to date evidence I can find. As a parent and as a doctor treating COVID inpatients, I've been keeping close tabs on this subject for a while and it has become increasingly fractious and polarised. I have attempted to take as neutral and as evidence-based a view as possible, but there are no black and white clear answers.

Apologies for the basic nature of the video, I spent what time I had today researching and filming, meaning there was none left to make it look fancy and you are stuck with my bookshelf as a backdrop, and a zip in my washing machine as the soundtrack.

For further reading:

Closing schools is not evidence-based and it harms children, BMJ - https://www.bmj.com/content/372/bmj.n521?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_term=hootsuite&utm_content=sme&utm_campaign=usage

A useful review for the UK - https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/jan/12/when-should-uk-schools-reopen-safe-covid

A useful review for the USA - https://www.medpagetoday.com/blogs/vinay-prasad/90658

Excellent summary of evidence around COVID-19 and children - https://dontforgetthebubbles.com/evidence-summary-paediatric-covid-19-literature/

Goldacre 12 million no risk adult death - https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.01.20222315v1?ijkey=4abc16ae672d46e844687e9a2128ea018bae8b21&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha

Reopening schools during the COVID-19 pandemic: governments must balance the uncertainty and risks of reopening schools against the clear harms associated with prolonged closure (Ara Darzi's team) - https://adc.bmj.com/content/106/2/111.long

European Centre for Disease Control and Prevention Executive Summary - https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/COVID-19-schools-transmission-August%202020.pdf

European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control school reopening review - https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/children-and-school-settings-covid-19-transmission

Open Schools, Covid-19, and Child and Teacher Morbidity in Sweden - https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2026670?query=TOC WHO review (staff spread is more important than staff-student spread) - https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/risk-comms-updates/epi-win-update40-overview-of-the-pandemic.pdf?sfvrsn=8d355bcd_4,%20https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.10.29.20220426v1

Japan childhood obesity - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0047272720302280?dgcid=raven_sd_aip_email

German study about school reopening - https://www.cream-migration.org/publ_uploads/CDP_22_20.pdf

I will continue to update this, I just need to go to sleep now! Worked last nightshift to cover a colleague that came down with COVID - we're still a way off being out of this.