Ontario opens up: expert advice for parents as the province moves into Step 3
At the Jump for Joy play centre on the Danforth, every surface is sanitized—every precaution is in place.
“We have to take a cautious approach when opening,” owner Irene Sikiotis told CTV News Toronto Wednesday. “We still have to be diligent.”
The indoor play centre sat empty for the better part of 16 months during the COVID-19 pandemic, but will finally be allowed to welcome back kids and their parents under Step 3 of the provincial re-opening framework.
“It’s a really long time coming,” Sikiotis said. “Especially for our pandemic babies.”
The centre will operate with reduced capacity limits, a masking requirement for children over two, contact tracing, sanitizing stations, and screenings—the exact measures many experts recommend parents continue to keep in mind as the province reopens.
Children under the age of 12 are too young to receive a COVID-19 vaccination in Canada at this time and public health officials stress they need to continue taking precautions to avoid catching the virus.
“Do a sort of a risk assessment of situations where there is potential crowding and situations where there is the ability for kids to interact with other kids at more intimate levels,” Thomas Tenkate, professor with the Ryerson School of Occupational and Public Health, advised.
“Try to avoid those as much as possible, but if they can’t be avoided, have the kids wear their masks.”
Doctors also suggest keeping children’s social contacts within a reasonable number to avoid mini-outbreaks.
“As we have this group under 12 who are not vaccinated, and most adults are, we are monitoring to see if there is a shift in those transmission patterns,” Dr. Karina Top, pediatric infectious disease physician with the Canadian Center for Vaccinology, told CTV News Toronto.
“I think it’s important for people to try to protect their kids as best they can.”
Pfizer and Moderna are both conducting COVID-19 vaccine trials on children younger than 12 years old and experts are hopeful that the shots could be approved for kids in Canada before the end of this year.
Under Step 3 of Ontario’s “Roadmap to Reopen,” which comes into place on July 16, indoor dining, indoor religious services, museums, concerts, and theatres are among the services allowed to reopen with certain restrictions.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
LIVE B.C. seeks ban on using drugs in 'all public spaces,' shifting approach to decriminalization
The B.C. government is moving to have drug use banned in 'all public spaces,' marking a major shift in the province's approach to decriminalization.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.