With respiratory infections surging, how can Ontario parents navigate the masking question?
The former director of Ontario’s COVID-19 science advisory table says that the province should be mandating masking in schools, child care centres and other essential settings amid a surge in respiratory virus infections that have overwhelmed pediatric hospitals.
Dr. Fahad Razak made the comment to CP24.com this week.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
He said that while masks “are not a panacea” and “only reduce risk; not eliminate it,” they can help to take some of the pressure off hospitals, especially when combined with other protective measures.
His comments come in the wake of the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) passing a non-binding motion to ask students and staff to wear a mask in all public school board buildings. A number of other boards, including the Durham District School Boards, have voted against stronger-worded motions to either formally require masking or request that public health officials use the powers of their officers to do so.
“For public health, it's always more effective if this is done centrally and collectively, rather than downloading decision making onto individuals, families and parents and children. So this is not the ideal sequence you'd like to see in the province,” Razak said of the Ford government’s largely hands-off approach to masking. “I've been on the side of having a masked mandate for quite some time. Not only in a public schools and daycares but also in other areas that are essentially indoor settings that people have to use in order to go about their daily lives. So public transit, grocery stores, healthcare settings.”
Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kieran Moore has recommended that Ontarians resume masking in public indoor settings, however, he has stopped short of issuing a mandate so far and several government officials, including Health Minister Sylvia Jones, have insisted that masking must remain “a personal choice.”
Speaking with CP24.com, Razak said that he is “realistic” and appreciates that a mask requirement likely isn’t “imminent anytime soon in public settings, including schools.”
But he said that parents, in particular, should be doing “whatever they can” to protect their children given the number of young people who are ending up hospitalized with respiratory infections.
Here is Razak’s advice to parents as they navigate what could be a challenging few months:
IS THERE STILL VALUE IN EVEN INTERMITTENT MASKING?
Razak says that it will be important to “reduce risk as much as you can this winter” and that includes masking, where possible. He said that in his family, he has a four-year-old child who is “pretty understanding” and wears their mask regularly and a three-year-old for whom getting to wear a mask can be a struggle. His message to parents: do your best to get your child to wear masks as much as they can when at school but don’t fret too much about those times when they inevitably take it off.
“We are living this and we encourage them to wear masks. Our four-year-old will, our three-year-old will intermittently,” he said. “Look anytime that someone is wearing high-quality mask well is a time where their risk of exposure goes down. So if you can't achieve that over the entire period of the day but you can do it over part of the day that's better than not wearing it at all. There is no perfection here. It is about reducing risk wherever you can.”
WHAT AGE SHOULD CHILDREN START WEARING MASKS?
When Ontario had a mask mandate, it applied to all children ages two and up, however Moore now says that children ages two to five should wear masks in indoor public settings only “if they can tolerate the mask and safely put it on and off.” Razak told CP24.com that there is really no universal age for when children should start wearing masks in school, as “parents know their own kids the best.”
“If you have a child under five who seems to be fairly mature around the use of masks and is not finding it too much of a burden and is able to keep it on, I'd say go for it. On the other hand, if it's a big fight, I would say it's not worth it. They're not going to wear it properly, they are not going to keep it on,” he said.
Razak said that older children have all been impacted by the “viral surge” we have seen in recent years and are likely to be more able to appreciate the importance of masking. He said that parents should provide “concrete examples” and really try to explain to their children how masks can protect them and those around them.
WHAT ABOUT SHORT INTERACTIONS? SHOULD YOU STILL MASK?
Razak said that while it may “feel performative” to put a mask on for a brief interaction, such as dropping a child off at daycare his own attitude is “why not?”
“I don't have a strong scientific opinion on it. I would just say that you can wear a mask in indoor settings when kids are around, it's probably helpful,” he said. “The longer you're wearing it is probably more helpful. So if it's only a couple of minutes, it's probably very little effect. But If it's a longer period of time it is probably more needed.”
IS THERE A POINT IN WEARING A MASK IF NOBODY ELSE IS?
There is still protection for individuals who wear a mask “even if you are one of the few people doing it,” Razak says. He says that masks are, of course, more protective if they are being worn by a significant number of people in a given setting. But at this point in the pandemic, Razak said that people probably have to be “realistic about what you can and can’t control.”
“Masks have two effects. They protect the wearer based on what they are inhaling and then they protect everyone else around you because if that individual is sick, some of those respiratory particles that would carry infections are stopped by the mask before being circulated in the room,” he said. “So wearing a mask in a room, even if you're one of the few people doing it, does help you.”
WHAT CAN PARENTS EXPECT OVER THE COURSE OF THE WINTER?
Razak said that there are likely some “really difficult weeks and months” ahead but he said that it remains to be seen whether it will be as bad as this “current surge,” which has prompted several children’s hospitals to limit surgeries in a bid to free up capacity.
Health Minister Sylvia Jones did tell reporters on Friday that there are some signs that the spread of RSV in Ontario is slowing. However, Public Health Ontario has warned that influenza cases continue to multiply. Last week 14.4 per cent of all tests for influenza came back positive, compared to 13.7 per cent the previous week.
“These viruses can have a very sharp uptick and downtick so people will be watching very closely to see if we have a receding wave. But even if we're starting to recede any ability we have to offload these periodic hospitals is helpful right now,” Razak said. “Every child that doesn't become sick enough to end up in hospital is one less child that has to be cared for in these critical care settings.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
They were from different countries and barely spoke each other's languages. More than 20 years later, they're still happily in love
He decided to spend Christmas somewhere that wouldn't involve snowstorm disasters. She was spending the holidays with family, travelling for the first time outside of her native country of Venezuela. 23 years later, they're still in love.
Man who set himself on fire outside Trump trial dies of injuries, police say
A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former U.S. President Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said.
12 students and teacher killed in Columbine school shooting remembered at 25th anniversary vigil
Thirteen victims of the Columbine High School shooting were remembered during a vigil Friday on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the shooting that was the worst the nation had seen at the time.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza city of Rafah kills at least 9 Palestinians, including 6 children
An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza's southernmost city killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
Iraq investigates a blast at a base of Iran-allied militias that killed 1. U.S. denies involvement
Iraqi authorities said Saturday that they were investigating an explosion that struck a base belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of Iran-allied militias, killing one person and injuring eight.
The House is on the brink of approving aid for Ukraine and Israel after months of struggle
The House is preparing in a rare Saturday session to approve US$95 billion in foreign aid for Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. allies.
'It was joy': Trapped B.C. orca calf eats seal meat, putting rescue on hold
A rescue operation for an orca calf trapped in a remote tidal lagoon off Vancouver Island has been put on hold after it started eating seal meat thrown in the water for what is believed to be the first time.