| REVIEW ARTICLE |
|
| Year : 2021 | Volume
: 30
| Issue : 1 | Page : 8-16 |
|
|
A rapid review of the reopening of schools in this COVID-19 pandemic? How ready are we in Nigeria?
Chinonyelum Thecla Ezeonu1, Chigozie Jesse Uneke2, Paul Olisaemeka Ezeonu3
1 Department of Pediatrics, Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital; Department of Pediatrics, Ebonyi State University; Department of Health Policy/Systems, African Institute for Health Policy and Health Systems, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, Nigeria
2 Department of Health Policy/Systems, African Institute for Health Policy and Health Systems, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, Nigeria
3 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, College of Medical Sciences, Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu Alike, Ikwo, Nigeria
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Chinonyelum Thecla Ezeonu
Department of Pediatrics, Ebonyi State University, PMB 053, Abakaliki
Nigeria
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None
DOI: 10.4103/NJM.NJM_161_20
|
|
|
Reopening schools raise several ethical issues, including safety, privacy, autonomy, vulnerability. Some countries have gradually reopened their schools with explicit guidelines for safety. The safe reopening of schools demands sensitivity to community inequities. We aimed to conduct a rapid review of the strategies adopted in the reopening of schools in some countries amid the Covid-19 and highlight the lessons learned and to consider the feasibility of some of the existing Nigerian guidelines on school reopening. A rapid review technique using PubMed search was conducted using the combination of the following keywords: Covid-19, school, reopening along with a Google search using the phrase 'schools reopened in COVID-19 pandemic.' Ten articles met the inclusion criteria and were reviewed. Eight countries namely China, Taiwan, South Korea, Norway, Denmark, Germany, Australia, and Israel were identified. All the countries started with phased reopening and a reduction in class size. Wearing masks was mandatory in some countries. Hand hygiene and strict cleaning of high-touch surfaces were ensured. The Nigerian government's guidelines towards the reopening of schools sound good, but the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness need to be objectively assessed and contextualized across all tiers of the government and at all levels of development to avoid COVID -19 resurgence.
|
|
|
|
| [FULL TEXT] [PDF]* |
|
 |
|
