The response to confirmed cases or outbreaks of COVID-19 in the community or in a school is the responsibility of, and will be led and managed by, Public Health HSE. My Department has confirmed with Public Health that the enhanced Public Health schools teams will be available to fully support schools that have reopened, and that full contact tracing and bulk fast-track testing within the school setting will resume immediately for schools as they reopen.
In all instances where COVID-19 is positively confirmed in a school age child in community testing (referred by G.P) or as part of close contact testing in the community, Public Health are immediately notified and a Public Health Risk Assessment(PHRA) is initiated with the school by local HSE public health Schools Teams. Where COVID-19 is detected in an adult in the community, either through symptomatic or close contact testing and when initial contact tracing confirms that they work in a school setting, Public Health are immediately notified and the Public Health Risk Assessment(PHRA) is initiated with the school by HSE School Teams in a similar way.
The findings of the Public Health Risk Assessment (PHRA), which is undertaken by a Public Health Doctor, where a confirmed case has attended school whilst infectious, assesses many different aspects of disease transmission as laid out in the Schools Pathway document and this determines the identification of close contacts. This enables the most accurate and effective determination of the relevant information allowing tailored, measured protection and prevention of Covid-19 in schools
