Information on  coronavirus

Information on the emerging outbreak of novel coronavirus

This will be updated as soon as I have more information.

What you should know as of the 30th of January.

All students and staff members who have travelled to Hubei Province, China, are advised to stay at home and avoid public settings, including attendance at schools and early learning centres, until 14 days after last being in Hubei Province, China.

Children and staff who are well and have travelled to other provinces in China, or any other areas where there have been reported cases, are NOT recommended to be excluded from schools and child care services unless the following applies:

• The person is a confirmed case of novel coronavirus 
• The person is a close contact with a confirmed case of novel coronavirus in the past 14 days

If you think a child, student or staff member may meet one of the above criteria please call the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to discuss further actions on 1300 651 160.

The situation regarding the emerging outbreak of novel coronavirus has continued to evolve.

The Commonwealth’s Chief Medical Officer and Victoria’s Chief Health Officer have this afternoon recommended a stronger precautionary approach to managing coronavirus for travellers returned from Hubei province.

This recommendation is that parents/guardians/carers of students should ensure that any returning student is isolated at home and should not attend school for 14 days:

• following exposure to any confirmed novel coronavirus case; or
• after leaving Hubei Province.

This same advice applies to any staff who have returned or are returning from Hubei province.

The Chief Health Officer’s current advice is that staff and students do not need to be isolated at home if they have recently travelled in other parts of China or other countries and are not showing any symptoms of the virus.

Rest assured that if I believe a student or staff member is showing relevant symptoms, I will ask the student’s parents/guardians/carers or the staff member to call the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to discuss further actions on 1300 651 160.

Consider yourself informed of this new advice after reading the attached factsheet.

Translated versions of the factsheet will also be available shortly.

Additional advice and information on the steps to take can be found on the coronavirus web page which also includes advice on:

• continuity of learning for students who are not attending school
• international students and families hosting
• international travel
• maintaining good health hygiene at school
• health promotion posters and materials
• information, resources and contacts related to coronavirus.

This new advice is based on the latest expert recommendations of the Commonwealth’s Chief Medical Officer and Victoria’s Chief Health Officer.

This new advice may mean that some families need to stay away from school for a short period of time. Rest assured you are a valued member of the IPS community and we all look forward to this health risk being resolved.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Mark Kent

Principal