Frequently Asked Questions
Can students/staff having travelled internationally return to school settings under the new “International Border Pilot Program” at the Calgary Airport?
The new “International Border Pilot Program” requires registrants to adhere to several conditions. Please follow this link to read the full conditions of the program.
The section below refers to school and child care and indicates:
“Child care programs (for example daycare, out of school care), K to 12 schools and post-secondary institutions – attendees, students in schools and staff who work in these settings cannot go back to these settings until they have their second test and have received a negative result.”
Participants in this pilot must undergo a second test on day 6 or 7 after returning to Alberta. This means that children and staff members will not be allowed back into a school until after they get a second negative test result, which given these timelines will be a minimum of seven days from the time that participants are back in Alberta.
Will my child attend school everyday?
Yes. Students will be grouped into small cohorts to maintain physical distancing.
What if my child's teacher is required to stay home?
If the classroom teacher is legally required to stay away from school due to AHS isolation protocols, one of our regular substitute teachers will supervise the students in the classroom, and the students’ teacher may lead lessons remotely.
What is the approach for children who exhibit COVID-like symptoms that are attributable to pre-existing, managed, non-contagious conditions? E.g. asthma, allergies
A student who develops symptoms that could be caused by either COVID-19 or by a known pre-existing condition (e.g., allergies) should be tested for COVID-19 to confirm that it is not the source of their symptoms before entering or returning to school. For a child who has allergies or other pre-existing medical conditions, these (non COVID-19) symptoms would become their baseline health status. The student can attend school as long as the symptoms stay the same. Please contact us about your child’s pre-existing medical conditions so we may keep a confidential record of these conditions.
Should your child exhibit symptoms of COVID-19 that are not attributable to a pre-existing condition, they must be kept home. We appreciate every member of the school community abiding by these measures as we know it takes a collective effort to keep our students, staff and families healthy and safe.
When do students or staff need to self-isolate?
Anyone with symptoms should not be at school if they are ill. Anyone with symptoms of fever, cough, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, or loss of smell/taste, MUST legally self-isolate for 10 days after the onset of symptoms and should be tested for COVID-19. They cannot go to school or attend any public place. Anyone who is identified as a close contact of a confirmed positive case must self-isolate for 14 days from the date of exposure. They cannot go to school or attend any public place. Even if they test negative for COVID-19, they must stay in isolation for 14 days. After testing, there are further instructions at ahs.ca/results about the actions that someone must take based on their test results Please contact [email protected] to let us know.
What happens when a school student or staff member tests positive?
AHS receives positive case results directly from the lab. The staff member or student (or their parent/guardian) is informed of their positive test result, and provided with guidance, by AHS Public Health.
The positive case is required to isolate at home.
They cannot attend school until Public Health determines that they are no longer infectious.
