To want to know when school staff and children are going to have Covid vaccinations

[F1ftyF1fty]

I work in a primary school. I have dc in school.

Given the current surge I frankly don’t want to return to school next week and sit in a squashed classroom amongst 30 children all day without PPE or social distancing. I don’t want my dc in a similar environment.

There is now a vaccine but my age group seem to be way down the list. Surely school staff and children should be higher up the list and at the very least have some indication of when they will be vaccinated.

Ffsffsffsffsffs Why ex friend? If her bosses have said she is in a critical role and should have a vaccine why are you angry with her? I suspect there will be lots of discrepancies within the first band eg some 90 year olds unvaccinated while 80 year olds have been, some areas which have started, others that haven’t, some that will have had it opportunistically to avoid wastage.

You seem so angry and resentful. Have you spoken to anyone professional about this?

@Ffsffsffsffsffs
Bloody hell, it must be awful being as bitter and twisted as you are!

@slothbyday

Our nhs trust vaccinate all 2-11 year olds for flu, the rationale is that it reduces the spread of the flu to the older generation and reduces the hospitalisation numbers - they see it as a control measure for winter flu season.

With the exception that it's not been tested on kids yet (maybe hopefully they are testing phases for paediatrics at this point?)

I'm struggling to understand why this rationale isn't being applied to Covid too

Exactly! Not just to protect others from it, but also our children themselves. This is a new virus, it has spreaded through lockdowns, all sort of measures, transferred between species several times. Good that they get it mild or no symptoms, but a future strain could start affecting them. Specially if we leave them to be the last group to be protected, so roaming free on our precious ones! Even a common virus, like the flu, took millions of lives not so long ago. I think we should use the technology we have today to protect them too. At least they do have adverce effects for them. Which yet, I am to know of a vaccine that is applied to adults, and no children......

@slothbyday

Our nhs trust vaccinate all 2-11 year olds for flu, the rationale is that it reduces the spread of the flu to the older generation and reduces the hospitalisation numbers - they see it as a control measure for winter flu season.

With the exception that it's not been tested on kids yet (maybe hopefully they are testing phases for paediatrics at this point?)

I'm struggling to understand why this rationale isn't being applied to Covid too

Because children are superspreaders of flu. This is well documented.

It doesn't appear that children are superspreaders of covid (I mean, they're obviously able to spread it, despite what the dfe want to convince teachers). It's also uncertain yet whether the vaccine even prevents transmission.

@2020out

It doesn't appear that children are superspreaders of covid

What do you understand by 'superspreaders' both for flu and for Covid?

@F1ftyF1fty But the whole of the NHS surely shouldn’t be a priority group as others have pointed out. Also if you want nhs staff on the frontline in work without disruption vaccination for school staff is necesssry ASAP. The disruption last term pre this new turn of events was bad enough.

It's not just about NHS staff being disrupted - although a factor - it's about nhs staff not passing on COVID to people who are sick and vulnerable.

And clearly nhs staff being off sick is more of a problem than teachers being off sick. Missing medical personnel cant care for sick people.

Teachers being off sick is inconvenient but not life threatening to others.

I really don't see any need to prioritise teachers over any other non nhs or non care key workers. And certainly not over anyone who has a higher clinical need.

[quote trulydelicious]@2020out

It doesn't appear that children are superspreaders of covid

What do you understand by 'superspreaders' both for flu and for Covid?[/quote]
That they spread flu more easily than adults but not covid.

As we get people vaccinated, we will get data on the transmission halted or not with it.
But.... I do think children can spread it. From the experience around myself. I know they keep going about not to be so, and data for primary points to that, but with our experience in secondary much looks like they can get it from adults, and pass it between themselves, and then their families. And the statistics show secondaries having large and increasing numbers too.

Because children are superspreaders of flu. This is well documented.

Yes, when they get 'flu they are often coughing and snotting, and feeling unwell and wanting cuddles. If they are too unwell for school then they may be cared for by grandparents while parents work.

@Ffsffsffsffsffs

I've just seen on my fb that a soon to be ex friend who is a critical, but extremely back-office but not patient-facing NHS employee has been vaccinated, despite having had covid in September. Other friends are in A&E, have been told to turn off the t&t app as it is assumed they will be in contact wit positive patients, have been told no vaccines.

I'm getting ready to go back to work in a giant secondary school on Monday in a tier 4 area, no ppe, no vaccine anywhere close.

Angry isn't the word...

Wow! Bitter much!

How lucky for your soon to be ex friend for having someone so callous to be removed from their lives. Christ with "friends" like you who needs enemies!

Children can, and do, spread coronavirus. Maybe not as well as adults but quite well enough. Also, because they tend to have mild, atypical symptoms they are often in school whilst infectious.

I do think that, as the vaccines are currently limited, we should give it to people who we know are going to get seriously ill and with an increased chance of death. Obviously in an ideal world, everyone would be vaccinated within a couple of weeks and this wouldn’t be a problem. That just isn’t possible.

I think it would be wrong for a healthy 25 year old teacher to get the vaccinate before a vulnerable 55 year old (for example) based solely on their profession.

A very unpopular view on MN I know but all these lockdowns and restrictions have been to “save lives” - vaccinating healthy people who are more than likely not going to get seriously illness, seems to go against absolutely everything we have done for the last 9 months.

And I know people are going to say “but what about long covid” - we have been told once the vulnerable / elderly are vaccinated, we will open up. Covid will still be there, and so will the possibility of healthy people catching it and long covid. So are people’s views now that we shouldn’t open up schools / economy etc., until everyone has been vaccinated?

@Ffsffsffsffsffs

Some people have been vaccinated because the vaccine was there and those administering didn't want it to go to waste. Someone posted on a thread recently about a GP's wife being vaccinated because there was a cancelled appointment and she was home, so rather than waste it she went in to have it.

It feels unfair but it all helps everyone in the long run.

And I, too, have a friend in the NHS back office who's been vaccinated and even as a teacher I'll be lucky to get mine before July. But you just have to remember that everyone who can be vaccinated will be offered it eventually.

@kowari

Yes, when they get 'flu they are often coughing and snotting, and feeling unwell and wanting cuddles

I was thinking beyond the snotting and cuddles, whether there was any detailed technical explanation as to why children would be superspreaders of flu and not Covid - taking into account that Covid is spread by asymptomatic carriers too

[quote IrishMamaMia]@WeAllHaveWings do you have a source for that regarding isolating? Haven't seen that anywhere and if true that will be dropped quickly I imagine.[/quote]
@IrishMamaMia dont have a source, but it has been mentioned several times in briefings and again tonight that being vaccinated doesn't mean you are then free to do as you like as vaccinated people can still transmit. Government guidelines will still need to be followed.

Thanks @WeAllHaveWings

The teachers I know in RL don't whinge either, it's only the ones on here!

Has it not occurred to you that they perhaps use this as a forum to share their concerns because they can't do it in RL?