Economic Observation Network According to the CCTV News app, as the summer vacation draws to a close, familiar campus life is about to reopen. Students who were originally scattered across different families and cities have quickly reunited in classrooms, dormitories, canteens, and sports fields.

From the perspective of infectious diseases, starting school not only means a gathering of people, but also a restart of a highly connected network of interpersonal contacts. A student may connect with their desk mate, roommate, club partner, teacher, and family members simultaneously every day. Therefore,The truly effective protection for starting school is not about wrapping oneself up, but about cutting off key links in the chain of pathogen transmission as much as possible.

After the start of school, it's not just about preventing a certain type of disease, mastering protective methods is even more crucial.

Coughing, runny nose, and fever may look like a "cold", but the pathogen behind them may be completely different. After the start of school, there has been a sudden increase in personnel mobility and close contact, creating more opportunities for the spread of different pathogens. Therefore, a new concept needs to be established during the start of the school year: don't just ask "what disease has been popular recently", but also ask "how the pathogen spreads and at which point can I cut off the transmission chain

Level 1: Emphasize indoor ventilation - protect the space for shared breathing in the classroom

In the past, when we talked about respiratory infectious diseases, we often emphasized droplets and object surfaces. But for respiratory pathogens that can be transmitted through the air,Indoor air quality itself is an important component of infection prevention and control.

Schools are particularly worth paying attention to. Dozens of students stay in the same classroom for a long time, and if the doors and windows are closed for a long time, the exhaled aerosols will gradually accumulate.

A study on school ventilation and air filtration found that mechanical ventilation, especially when combined with efficient filtration, is associated with lower concentrations of carbon dioxide, fewer air particles, and lower levels of infection or absenteeism; The comprehensive use of multiple measures such as ventilation and filtration has a more stable effect in reducing the risk of transmission.

Remember three words after school starts: change, disperse, and avoid.

Change - Let the indoor air change.When weather and environmental conditions permit, classrooms and dormitories should strengthen ventilation and air exchange. Do not only open the window once in the morning, avoid prolonged exposure to crowded and poorly ventilated environments.

Disperse - reduce the accumulation of pathogens in local space.Stepping out of the classroom during break time is not only a way for the eyes to rest, but also a simple way to reduce continuous exposure.

Avoid - Reduce close range transmission when sick.When experiencing acute respiratory symptoms such as fever, obvious cough, sore throat, etc., it is not recommended to force oneself to participate in group activities; When entering crowded places, it is necessary to wear masks according to one's own situation. Masks are not a must-have for all weather conditions, but are more suitable as an additional protective layer in specific high-risk scenarios.

Level 2: Don't just focus on "disinfection", hand hygiene is still a cost-effective measure

How many public surfaces does a child come into contact with in a day, from the classroom to the cafeteria, and then to the bathroom, playground, and dormitory? Door handles, stair handrails, balls, tables and chairs, tableware, mobile phones

Hand hygiene may sound ordinary, but there is solid evidence to support it. Studies have shown that interventions that promote hand washing with soap are associated with a 17% reduction in the risk of acute respiratory infections; The risk of lower respiratory tract infection is reduced by about 22%.

However, washing hands should also be done at critical moments. Compared to mechanically washing many times a day,More importantly, it is important to maintain these milestones: before eating, after using the restroom, after blowing your nose or coughing, after engaging in physical and outdoor activities, and after exposure to obvious pollutants.There is another detail that is easily overlooked:No wash hand sanitizer cannot completely replace running water and soap.Especially after using the toilet, when hands are visibly dirty, or when there are cases of vomiting or diarrhea at school, soap and running water should be used first to wash hands carefully. Some pathogens that cause gastroenteritis cannot be simply solved by relying on alcohol based hand sanitizers.

This is a very important point that parents and teachers should pay attention to in campus prevention and control.

If multiple students in a class experience nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain in a short period of time, it cannot be simply understood as "recent gastrointestinal problems in children". Attention should be paid to clustered gastroenteritis.

Norovirus is a highly prevalent type on campus.One important reason why norovirus is easily transmitted on campus is that vomit and excrement can contaminate the environment and hands, leading to subsequent transmission.

Therefore, if a student suddenly vomits in the classroom or dormitory: do not let classmates watch, and do not rush to ask students to help clean up.Immediately stay away from the contaminated area and have trained personnel clean and disinfect according to regulations, while also taking personal protective measures.Equally important for parents: when a child experiences significant vomiting or diarrhea,Don't go back to school sick just to avoid delaying your studies.

There is another type of campus infectious disease that must be emphasized separately:Vaccines for measles, mumps, rubella, chickenpox, and other diseases can prevent them.Personal hygiene measures are important for these diseases, but they cannot replace immune barriers. Research has found that school outbreaks caused by measles are the most concerning, as measles and rubella outbreaks mainly occur among unvaccinated or unvaccinated students and faculty, and schools sometimes further become "amplifiers" for community transmission.

This reminds us that in addition to backpacks, school uniforms, and stationery, one thing should also be added to the list of preparations for starting school - vaccination records.Parents can check whether their children have completed the corresponding vaccination according to the national immunization program.Especially for newly enrolled children, new students, and transfer students, if any missed vaccinations are found, they should be promptly vaccinated according to the professional recommendations of the local vaccination clinic.

As the number of susceptible individuals in a class or school decreases, even if the pathogen is brought into the campus, it is difficult to form a sustained transmission chain.

Some regions in our country have entered the season of active mosquito vectors, and summer vacation happens to be a period of concentrated family travel, family visits, and cross-border travel.

Therefore, if a child has recently been to an area where related diseases are prevalent and experiences symptoms such as sudden fever, obvious joint pain, rash, and red eyes before and after returning to school, do not just tell the doctor that the child has a fever when seeking medical treatment. The more important sentence is: "Where have you been recentlyTravel history, like body temperature, is sometimes an important clue for doctors to diagnose diseases.

Meanwhile, in late summer and early autumn, mosquitoes and insects are still active in some areas. Schools and families should promptly remove small accumulated water such as flowerpot trays, water buckets, and waste containers. One of the most effective protections against mosquito borne infectious diseases is not to keep children indoors, but to prevent mosquitoes from leaving breeding "little puddles".

The sixth level, what really matters is to block the transmission chain and stop the spread as soon as possible

The campus after the start of the school year cannot become a sterile space completely free of pathogens. Children need to attend classes, exercise, make friends, and have normal social interactions. The prevention and control of infectious diseases in schools is increasingly emphasized,It's not about pursuing unrealistic 'zero risk', but about establishing multiple layers of protection:

Vaccine reduces susceptible individuals;

Ventilation reduces the concentration of pathogens in the air;

Hand washing to cut off contact and transmission;

Take timely rest after illness to reduce the source of infection;

Symptom monitoring helps detect clustered outbreaks as early as possible;

Standardize disposal to prevent a case from becoming an outbreak in a class, grade, or even a school.

Simply telling students to "pay attention to hygiene" is often not enough. Combining classroom teaching, interactive training, peer participation, and multimedia health education is more conducive to forming sustained respiratory hygiene behaviors.

Finally, give your child and parents a "Six Word Tips for School Safety": seedlings, wind, hands, food, mosquitoes, and newspapers

Vaccine - Check for vaccines. Before the start of the school year, check the vaccination records and promptly consult for re vaccination if missed.

Wind - plenty of ventilation. Maintain air circulation in densely populated spaces such as classrooms and dormitories.

Hands - Wash your hands. Especially before meals, after using the restroom, and after exposure to pollutants.

Eat - keep your mouth shut. Pay attention to drinking water and food hygiene, and do not eat food from unknown sources or improperly stored.

Mosquitoes - clear stagnant water and prevent bites. Especially in late summer and early autumn, do not ignore mosquito borne infectious diseases.

Report symptoms early. Promptly inform teachers and parents of any symptoms such as fever, persistent cough, vomiting, diarrhea, abnormal rash, etc; If multiple people have similar symptoms, it is even more important to report and handle them as soon as possible.

The ideal health state for starting school is not to be completely free from illness, but to teach children self-protection and to protect their classmates around them.

Vaccinate before infection, open windows before gatherings, wash hands before eating, schedule rest before transmission, and detect abnormalities before outbreaks. These seemingly insignificant small actions precisely form the most reliable defense against infectious diseases on campus.

The countdown to the new semester has begun. The backpack can be filled with new textbooks, but don't let infectious diseases "report" with the child.

May every child return to school healthy and attend classes with peace of mind.