DDs school want me to COVID test her, AIBU to say no?

[mybossisaprick]

Dd, who is in primary school, has got the cold that’s been going round. She’s not too unwell in herself, and is happily playing, but she has a husky voice and a cough. She’s maybe a bit more tired than normal, but nothing that would mean she would need to stay off school. If she was unwell enough to miss school, I’d keep her off.

Her teacher pulled me aside at pickup time and asked me if she’d taken a COVID test. I said no, she hadn’t. Teacher asked me why not, and I explained that she wasn’t unwell enough to miss school, and so there was no point testing her for COVID. Teacher said that I should test her anyway, and if positive she should stay home. I explained that myself and my partner both have to work, we don’t get enough leave as it is, and whilst if DD was actually unwell in herself and couldn’t go to school, one of us could stay off with her, but since she’s not, we really don't have the resources to be taking time off. Also, I don’t have easy access to tests and I’d rather not buy a test when I don’t need to.

AIBU to tell this teacher that I wouldn’t be testing DD?

Well, my husband had Covid a few weeks back and his face to face appointment at the GP's was cancelled pretty pronto. No way were they letting him cross the threshold.
So, it's not teachers who are being "special" about this.

Exactly.
Back then we were little we would play role play schools or hospitals. No joke, a group pf kids in my daughters classes were playing covid vaccination clinics last year!

My 7 year old still asks if we're "allowed" to visit people.
The damage to these kids is massively underestimated I think.

It’s a moot point as the LFT tests don’t work anymore anyway. They were always incredibly unreliable and now they barely work at all.

Jesus tap dancing Christ. That really does take it to new depths.

The longer we act like covid is just a cold, the more people will have the 'luxury' of keeping their kids off when sick I guess (as there will be even more people unable to work due to long covid).

@Ardith - to be fair- they are working, but a lot of people are using up old stashes of tests that are out of date. I’ve just had covid- it brought up positives on the days I felt shocking and I’ve saved the last of the tests in the box to test today as I’m due back in work tomorrow and it’s negative. If it had been positive, I’d be expected back in work anyway, because although I’m shattered and achy, I’m not too sick to be at work.

I work with teenagers.

OP - send your dd in if she’s well enough to be at school.

It's been nearly 4 years now. That was the time the scientists expected it to be not serious and a totally different virus. It's not the same anymore. So not unreasonable not to test.
(I was very strict with everything at the start so not a covid denier by any standard)

Wtf planet does this teacher live on? It’s a definite no, thank you very much!

I have covid at the moment and it has totally knocked me for six. I tested because I don't want to pass it on to others. I guess the teacher doesn't really want to catch covid in time for Christmas. I think you are being inconsiderate.

1 in 7 people carry flu with no symptoms and that kills but we don’t go round testing. I followed all the rules and, working in a hospital, tested twice a week for ages. I wouldn’t test my dc now. That said, 2 of my dc were homeschooled for 2 days last week as so many teachers were ill they couldn’t safeguard all the dc and sent their year group home! Never a thing that happened pre Covid.

Completely agree with this. The overwhelming majority of children had mild illness, even in Covid’s early days. That we, as adults allowed children to be isolated at home for months on end, with god knows what impact to their health and wellbeing, their education and their lives is to our greatest shame as a society.

My work is still on the side of if you test positive work from home if you feel up to it and please stay home until you test negative.

I bought some tests a while back because 4 of my colleagues have tested positive recently.

Make an official complaint. The teacher is trained in education and not medical treatment.
Most health professionals don't use them.
Children should not be sticking things into orifices smaller than an adult little finger, too much risk of damage.

Keeping children off school with covid isn't an option. My DC's schools are sending out attendance warnings when their attendance gets below 95%. Schools around here are pushing parents to send in ill children so the school can decide if they're too ill to be at school, that is well and truly overstepping the mark.

It was wrong of the teacher to ask the question. She should be raising it with tge school leadership team.

Spot the stupid person.

You are being more than unreasonable, you are putting other people's health at risk.
Why would you refuse to do this? You will be the first to complain if the teacher is off ill with Covid for weeks. Or if she is unable to work indefinitely if she doesn't fully recover and has to live with long covid.
I genuinely despair at this attitude. Are you aware of long covid at all? Do you understand that it can affect anybody? That the risk of not getting better is cumulative? That each infection carries serious risk?
But sure, it is inconvenient for you, so don't bother trying to protect the other children, the staff, all the vulnerable people who are particularly susceptible to Covid.
You don't want to do a test. You don't want to buy a test. She is in the wrong to ask you to consider anyone other than yourself.
Unbelievable.

One day soon you will all wake up and understand that each infection with covid weakens your immune system a little more and more. Of course the school is right, but go and infect everyone. Antivirals are easily obtainable in countries such as the US but near impossible to access even for the very small group the is eligible in the UK. Our health messaging is appalling.

Check out the website long covid kids and then cry about how cruel and ill informed you are. I am so upset. You have no idea what you are talking about. I could despair at the cruelty and ignorance.

Yep. We had two positive staff members in last week. General practice.

@TheCrystalPalace Well my husband has a chest infection, saw a GP today and was only asked in passing at the end of the appointment whether he had done a Covid test recently. So your experience isn’t universal.

The fact is, it’s actually more selfish to expect a child to miss yet another day of education and risk a parent losing their job, just so their teacher can have the Xmas celebration they’d planned.

I probably am. Loads of lurgys going round work here.