‘This is a single case. This is not an outbreak’

Sun, 09/27/2020 - 7:00pm

Lynda Clancy

CAMDEN — A case of COVID-19 afflicting one person associated with the Camden-Rockport Middle School has resulted in a letter sent to parents on Saturday, Sept. 26. The letter follows:

Dear Families, This letter is to inform you that an individual associated with the Camden Rockport Middle School recently tested positive for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).

If you or your child has been identified as a close contact of the person who tested positive, you would be contacted by the Maine CDC. We are informing you out of an abundance of caution. This is a single case. This is not an outbreak.

Because of our safety protocols, we have in place (masking, distancing, sanitizing, etc…) we are hopeful that there may not be secondary cases. Please monitor yourself and your children for signs and symptoms. Call a health care provider if you have any symptoms.

It is important that you call a healthcare facility before you show up in person. Stay home if you are sick. It is so important that you complete your child’s daily health screening each and every morning. The symptoms can be found here https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html

Preventing the spread of COVID-19 The virus mainly spreads when an infected person coughs or sneezes and an uninfected person breathes in the virus. Please continue to wear a mask, physically distance, and practice good hand hygiene by washing your hands with soap and water or using hand sanitizer. If you or your child has been identified as a close contact of the person who tested positive, you will be contacted by the Maine CDC.

Close contacts will be asked to quarantine for 14 days from last exposure to the positive individual. A negative test result does not get an individual out of quarantine. Middle school families and staff have been notified of the situation and all proper CDC guidelines regarding the cleaning of the building and necessary quarantining of close contacts will be in place.

The district is not at liberty to divulge specific information about the person who tested positive. As a community, we need your help to make sure this situation is not played out in social media.

Please be respectful of one another in your communications and mindful of the factual information. Contact details for more information For general COVID-19 questions, dial 211 (or 1-866-811-5695). You can also text your ZIP code to 898-211 or email info@211maine.org. For questions about your symptoms, call a healthcare provider. More information can be found at www.maine.gov/dhhs/coronavirus or www.cdc.gov/coronavirus Questions for the district can be directed to Maria Libby and Deb McIntyre by emailing maria.libby@fivetowns.net and debra.mcintyre@fivetowns.net.

Questions specific to the middle school can be directed to Gretchen.Kuhn@fivetowns.net (school nurse) or Jaime.Stone@fivetowns.net(School Principal).

he most common questions we’re getting at this point are…

1. Do my other children (or do I) need to quarantine if they are not in the grade level of impacted families?

If your child has been identified as a contact, that child needs to quarantine. Remember you would have been contacted by the CDC if your child was identified as a contact. Other children in your home who have not been identified as a contact do not need to quarantine and may continue with daily life as before (this would include anyone else in the household who is not identified as a contact).

2. What is the definition of CLOSE CONTACT:

For COVID-19, a close contact is anyone who was within 6 feet of an infected person (with or without a face mask) for at least 15 minutes. An infected person can spread COVID-19 starting 48 hours (or 2 days) before the person has any symptoms or tests positive for COVID-19.

3. Who contacts non-school organizations (e.g. local sports teams) about this case?

The contact tracers through the Maine CDC are responsible for this process.

4. What does quarantine mean?

Please see these CDC guidelines about when to quarantine for more information.

If you have other questions, please review the CDC website at this link before contacting the school.

Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclancy@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657