Delaware County Medical Society Summer/Fall 2020 - 28

FEATURE
Most children who are old enough to wear a face covering
likely have had the opportunity to familiarize themselves
with doing so at this point in the pandemic. If not, now
would be the time for parents and guardians to prepare
the students to wear face coverings for longer durations if
they return to in-person schooling. School districts across
the county have been drafting very thorough and quality
Health & Safety Plans that should help ease some of the
fears from parents, teachers, and staff.
There may not be a clear and easy answer to the question
of how to reopen schools this Fall. Most, if not all, of the
school districts in Delaware County have elected for either
a "blended" model of education or a fully virtual model.
The blended model entails students alternating between
attending schools two days one week and three days the
next week. The days not physically spent in school would
be dedicated to remote/distance learning. The fully virtual
model is exactly that - full remote/distance learning.
One thing is abundantly clear - it is the collaborative
efforts between health experts, educators, and school
administrators that will ensure the best possible reopening
plans for each individual school district in the county.
Health experts can provide the appropriate health-related
information needed to safely reopen schools, and the
educators and school administrators can formulate and
shape how to realistically execute these plans. It will be
imperative for these groups to continue to communicate
effectively throughout the school year. Being flexible and
willing and ready to adjust plans after the start of the
academic year will also be important.
As you can surmise after reading everything in the article
thus far, there is no easy answer to the question of how
to reopen schools that will completely satisfy all involved
parties. However, advocating for the safety and wellbeing
of students, teachers, and school staff should always be the
ultimate priority.

plans to reopen schools. It should also be evident that
we as physicians do have an important role to play in
the reopening process. The most tangible aspect of the
reopening process lies in something that many of us have
been doing with regularity throughout our careers -
completing the annual school and sports physicals. These
visits are even more critical in the midst of the pandemic as
they will be providing physicians not just an opportunity
for routine healthcare maintenance for students, but the
valuable opportunity to surveil and screen for specific
aspects of children's health that are significantly impacted
by the pandemic. Physicians should take the time to
assess many of the health-related items described above.
Understanding the social determinants of health will also
enable physicians to ask more pertinent questions to assess
how the pandemic has truly affected our students.
In time, the pandemic will end and a "new normal" will
be established. It is unfortunate that it took a pandemic to
expose some of the inequities that many of our children
are faced with. But hopefully in this new normal that lies
on the horizon we will be more aware of these issues. As
health experts, now is our time to act. We must continue to
communicate with school officials and work collaboratively
to effectively dismantle these disparities that affect
our children. It may seem like only a piece, but it is an
important piece of what we can do to ultimately improve
the communities in which we work and live.
*Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 - The 504
Plan is a plan developed to ensure that a child who has
a disability identified under the law and is attending an
elementary or secondary educational institution receives
accommodations that will ensure their academic success
and access to the learning environment.

Another vitally important factor in developing reopening
plans for schools is having experts in healthcare and
experts in education working in concert to find creative and
effective ways to address the disparities and inequalities
experienced by students that have been exposed by our
response to the Coronavirus pandemic.
By now, you should have a solid knowledge foundation
to have an informed dialogue with colleagues on the
multitude of factors that are in play for developing

26 DELAWARE COUNTY MEDICINE & HEALTH

summer/fall 2020

Dr. Ryan Mascio is a US Army veteran,
the Pediatrics Residency Program Director
and the Medical Director for Outpatient
Pediatric Services at Crozer Chester
Medical Center in Upland, PA.
Delaware County Medical Society Summer/Fall 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Delaware County Medical Society Summer/Fall 2020
