With numbers rising is it on the cards again?
Third post on the thread. As predicted, schools didn't closed.
Yes, that's my reading of it too.
In the same sense that if you broke your leg on Sunday, and were given a cert for 6 weeks, it might be dated from the Sunday and subsequent weekends would be included in your sick leave.
I would imagine also it had to be included as a specific scenario because there will be teachers who tested positive over the weekend, notified their schools that they wouldn't be in on Monday and if some of them end up out sick for longer than 10 days, it would be in their interests for it to count as Covid leave rather than sick leave.
A date has to be set from the new regulations so there has to be a cut off somewhere.
Important to know that weekend days and midterms/holidays/ are also counted as work days, for the purpose of sick leave, for those who might not know.
Thanks, Ken and Rainbow.
First, it would seem from those that "Day Zero", the day you get diagnosed, is followed by 7 full days, or have I misunderstood that? ["You should self-isolate (stay in your room) as soon as you notice symptoms of COVID-19 or get a positive COVID-19 test result. Either of these are considered day zero when you’re counting your days of self-isolation."]
Second, in the sample scenarios [Information Note TC 0002.2022 COVID SLWP] we have this: "Scenario 3 On 6th February 2022, employee is recorded as on Day 1 of Special Leave With Pay because they tested positive for COVID-19. The maximum Special Leave With Pay entitlement for this employee is 28 consecutive days, in line with paragraph 2.4 of Circular 0042/2021. Subject to specific criteria, there is extended entitlement to Special Leave with Pay beyond 28 days in line with paragraph 2.5 of Circular 0042/2021."
Now, 6 February/yesterday was a Sunday. Can a Sunday be considered "Day 1 of Special Leave with Pay"? And if the day of the positive diagnosis is "Day Zero", surely today, Monday, is Day 1? Actually, I think Scenario 5 answers this (but I'm open to correction): "Scenario 5 On 5th February 2022, employee tested positive for COVID-19 but it was not recorded on the OLCS/ETB system until 7th February or after. The maximum Special Leave With Pay entitlement for this employee is 28 consecutive days, in line with paragraph 2.4 of Circular 0042/2021. Subject to specific criteria, there is extended entitlement to Special Leave with Pay beyond 28 days in line with paragraph 2.5 of Circular 0042/2021."
Would this imply if one got a Covid 19 diagnosis yesterday, Sunday, that they can get 28 days paid leave even if it's only entered into the system by the school today, your first day off work?
As for evidence, it seems " COVID-19: Special Leave With Pay: Employee aged 39 years or under - Evidence of positive COVID-19 antigen test result (including test date) provided (HSE confirmation of employee’s record on HSE portal is acceptable)". That's the answer I needed. However, out of interest why do they have it divided into employees under 39, and employees over 40?
Main points:
It's posted here.
https://www.tui.ie/news/information-note-000222-covid-special-leave-with-pay-arrangements-.14395.html
Hse website goes through every possible scenario
it’s the same for teachers as any other person really
Here is the section on a positive antigen test
Latest info note for schools
Appendix A shows what’s needed as proof
It’s the HSE who should advise on this . The principal won’t know and can’t ask about an individuals vaccination status. It is also dependant on age if it’s an antigen test. Again the principal can’t ask this .
Its fairly clear on hse website . They do it out step by step for the various scenarios.
Your principal should know all the above
Anybody have the latest/most relevant guidelines for teachers who get Covid?
In particular, if a second-level teacher tests positive, how many days before he/she can return to the classroom? Also, if the result is from a self-administered positive antigen test, how do we get this "confirmed"/medical cert or whatever so that we are covered for the school absence?
Thank you History Queen. Staff morale is good so work remains a nice place to be. Our principal and deputies are really great. It's just the general exhaustion and trying to fit everything else in the day in - it can't go on. And with new close contact rules, I suppose it won't.
Gosh that sounds like a tough environment to work in. Our experience is much like Valeyards, most staff and students are back with a couple of kids missing from most classes and a few staff still out but nothing we can't manage. Hope things improve for ye soon.
We are an ETB. Thou shalt not close. Having said that I know principal was meeting them today because we are truckin' through the S&S so I think the TYs may be going from Monday - I guess it depends on how many staff are positive and how many are isolating without symptoms. I assume my principal knows this so we will hear if any decision has been made tomorrow
Would it not be better at this stsgr for your school to shut and teach online?
That way the positive kids who are well enough to hh and the self isolating students and staff could work away?
Wow, that's brilliant. We, on the other hand, are at crisis point and it looks like it's getting worse, not better for us. Which is strange, because for a school of our size, throughout the whole pandemic we had very few cases at all! I'm assuming the vast majority of our absences are close contacts so things bound to calm down hopefully.
Actually for us, today was basically a normal day. Numbers near normal, very few staff out. Looks like this has blown through our school on the run up to Christmas, during the holidays (was sad the amount of kids telling me they had to isolate for the holidays) and had it the week we came back.
To me, the unofficial strategy seems to be let omicron just take everyone and be done with it.
You tell 'em Boris! Lets get it done!
The sooner close contacts without symptoms are able to come back to work the better tbh. This is becoming unworkable and we are days away from having to ask some year groups to remain home. I am also finding it REALLY hard to maintain a work/life balance when there are so many isolating students to cater to as well. School internet ridiculously unreliable so live stream to them is not an option so I am here every evening doing pre-recorded explanations of what we will do in class the next day to have ready to send to them each morning.
In fairness, the kids are delighted with it and can't thank me enough - they truly are learning from home - but I can't keep doing this - it's crazy. I know someone will find fault with me for saying this, but I do have a life and a hobby and my doggies outside of work and I need to make time for them too.
This is hard to actually tease out. So rhinoviruses (cause a nice proportion of colds) and influenza don't proofread their own RNA (blueprints).....so they copy and copy but never really check the copy is right! It's like Chinese whispers and you get high rates of viable mutations (most mistakes are lethal, in most organism if they occur in genes). COVID 19 does have a proofreading ability, it does a quick pass over the copied RNA to make sure it looks right. This is generally a good thing if your deleveping therapeutics. It may stay roughly the same, or enough the same that vaccines and our own immunity could be enough.
There are some interesting theories on the 1890 pandemic cold was caused by a form of alphacoronavirus that is now endemic and causes a mild cold. It actually looks an awful lot like our current pandemic, symptomatically anyway. I'd actually be very optimistic now with the new data coming out but time will be the real tester of most of these theories. Though it does show the importance of keeping accurate historical records.
Is herd immunity even an actual possibility with a corona virus? Won't it just keep changing and evolving near indefinitely so long as it can transmit? (Hopefully evolving to something much the same as the common cold)
There are times I'd love a laughing emoji instead of a thanks 🤣🤣
Jesus you'd want to tell that to the lads who developed the measles and mumps vaccine........other highly contagious airborne viruses we got to herd immunity with using vaccines........
Although with people like you spreading incorrect rhetoric like that I can see why we are getting breakthrough cases in communities with low vaccination rates now
Or a sci-fi blockbuster
I would assume you have a fair idea that my degree (and more) is in this area. Biological sciences (I'm not going to be more specific, it would almost certainly identify me) and postgrad work also in this area.
But to be clear, if I didn't have a degree in this area it wouldn't make my explaination any less correct, science is funny like that.
You are on a hiding to nothing Timmy....Am_Zarathustra is correct.
Your statement that masks make the virus mutate faster is the kind of thing one might find in a dedicated echo chamber. If you have those qualifications you say you have you should be able to put them to good use and do a little reading from credible sources.
some will be forced to close with so many teachers and subs off.
Before we have this discussion what are you a teacher of or what science qualification do you have
I have degree in physics from limerick and I never worked in the field
What? There is a molecular clock in all organisms, they mutate at a particular rate. Viruses have no feelings, never minds about a mask. Bottlenecks can cause a change in a population but the mutation rate is still the same, there is simply more death in the unadapted or unmutated population. This is very basic evolutionary theory. You seem to be confusing bottlenecks and mutation rates. A bottleneck can cause what looks like rapid evolution but if actually just aggressive selection, not the same thing at all.
Mutation rates can be altered by mutagen, agents like uv radiation, radioactive compounds ect. A mask is going to cause no change to any mutation rate, it will simple help prevent transmission. A mutation may arise that contravenes this (unlikely given there is a physical barrier in place, and all viruses have a minimum particle size) but it wasn't caused by the mask, its just takes advantage of the mask being there to be more successful. The virus will mutate regardless of masks being around or not. This is dangerous rhetoric.
You.are wrong and that is a fact
You protect the vulnerable and let Herd immunity sort out the rest
That is how all air borne viruses have been dealt with up to covid in 2020
Masks reduce transmission and viruses mutate to adapt to the environment and to mor more effectively between hosts
Not just masks but all efforts to stop transmission means the virus will mutate to adapt
