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5 | O akville B eaver | T hursday,S eptem ber 2,2021 insidehalton.com For a Free consultation call oakville: 905.842.2022 ToronTo: 416.644.3999 Denied Disabled Benefits? I canhelp. My teamof experienced lawyers can help youwith: •Disability Claims Short-TermDisability, long-TermDisability, CPP •Car accidents •Slip and Falls •Wrongful Dismissal Injured? I don't get paid unless I getYoumoneY. oFFiCeS in oakville and ToronTo eMail: sspadafora@slspc.ca Disability and EmploymEnt law Over 120,000 satisfied custOmers 9 Locations to serve you better Heating & Cooling www.aireonewest.ca Beat the Price increase & shortageBeat the Price increase & shortage OAKVILLE 905-849-4998 1-888-827-2665 Beat the Price increase & shortageBeat the Price increase & shortage $700 OFF HIGH EFFICIENCY CENTRAL AIR HIGH-EFFICIENCY CENTRAL AIR & FURNACE $29 /MONTH OAC* *Call for Details Starting From $2,299 10 Year Factory Warranty *Call for Details Starting From $4,999 10 Year Factory Warranty Central air diagnostiC speCial Central air tune-up speCial $59 /MONTH OAC* $4,999 * $2,299* $49* *Call for Details $79* *Call for Details As schools prepare to welcome students back to in-person learning, Hal- ton's chief medical officer of health is urging a collab- orative community effort to keep them open. "We all know how much our students and families have been through because of the pandemic. School is so much more than aca- demics, and in-person learning is key for emotion- al and social skills develop- ment," said Dr. Hamidah Meghani in an information session for families hosted by Halton District School Board last Thursday (Aug. 26). During the 2020/2021 school year, Halton public health investigated 1,197 school exposure cases and 41 school outbreaks. "With Delta as the domi- nant variant of the virus circulating in our commu- nity now, I fully expect that there will be more student cases and exposures to come this fall. That's why it is so important to have lay- ers of protection at our schools and within our community, including in your own homes to ensure that we are doing every- thing possible to reduce the spread this fall." Because the threat of COVID-19 remains a reali- ty, school routines will be similar to last year's with students from JK to Grade 12 expected to wear masks in the classroom, hallways and on school buses. COVID cases declined in the region over the summer from an all-time mid-April peak because of the "enor- mous vaccination cam- paign that has been under- way as well as enhanced public health measures," however since late July, they are again on the rise. The new wave is driven by the Delta variant which has significantly jumped from one per cent of Halton cases in April of this year, to 67 per cent of cases in Ju- ly and the proportion of Delta cases has likely climbed higher in August, said Meghani. Because the Delta vari- ant is more contagious, higher vaccination rates are needed to protect the community at large, she said. As of August 18, all Hal- ton youth born in 2009 or earlier are eligible for the Pfizer vaccine. "Vaccines work. For cases reported in June to August among 12 to 17- year-olds in Halton, 100 per cent of these cases were among unvaccinated indi- viduals or those who had only received one dose of the vaccine," said Meghani. The most recent data shows that the COVID-19 vaccination rates among 12 to 17-year-olds in Halton who have received first dos- es is 87 per cent and 77 per cent for those who have re- ceived two doses. "This is amazing; and in- terestingly, Milton is out- pacing the rest of our com- munity with over 90 per cent of this age group with one dose, and 80 per cent with two doses. While this is extremely encouraging, I know we can do better. It is critical that we have a very high vaccination rate; as close to 100 per cent as we can get it." School closures and re- mote learning have nega- tively impacted the mental health and behaviour of children and youth, said Meghani. Based on recent Halton data, parents of young chil- dren have reported more behavioural challenges, while adolescents were more likely to report anxi- ety and depressive symp- toms. "These trends are seen not only in Halton but across Canada. In order to keep schools open this year and avoid worsening child and youth mental health outcomes, we'll need to work together." Along with masking and physical distancing, one of the key features of the back-to-school plan is screening. All students teachers and staff must continue to self-screen for symptoms every day before attending school or childcare using the Ministry of Health's School and Childcare Screening Tool. Halton public health will also be resuming rou- tine school-based immuni- zations for Hepatitis B, HPV and Meningitis. Infor- mation is available at hal- ton.ca/immunize "Returning safely to school is a community ef- fort based on individual ac- tions and we all have a role to play in helping to keep our numbers low." COMMUNITY EFFORT NEEDED TO KEEP SCHOOLS OPEN: HALTON'S MOH Masking, distancing and screening are all part of HDSB's back-to-school plan. Graham Paine/Metroland KATHY YANCHUS kyanchus@metroland.com NEWS