Kia ora koutou

Trillian Trek

It was an exciting start to the morning with the Trillian Trek team at school early, giving out sausages to everyone as well as donating 6 sponsored bikes to children whose names were drawn out randomly. Simon Dallow was MC, leading a great team of organisers of the Trek. We felt privileged to have been one of the schools visited.

Coronavirus Update from the Ministry of Education

Three new confirmed cases were announced this weekend taking the total confirmed cases for New Zealand to eight. We have been advised these cases are not connected with any schools or early learning services and they are doing well and two are self-isolating at home/hotel with one being treated in hospital.

On 14 March the Prime Minister has announced new and strong protective measures to keep individuals, families and communities safe and healthy. The measures come into effect from 1am Monday 16 March 2020 and are as follows:

• Travel restrictions remain in place for people arriving from or who have been in mainland China and Iran over the prior 14 days (Category 1A)

• In addition, all travellers coming from all parts of the world, except parts of the Pacific, will be required to self-isolate for 14 days on arrival in New Zealand. This also includes Australia and French Polynesia. This self-isolation requirement applies to New Zealand citizens, permanent residents and their families (Category 1B)

• All travellers coming from the following parts of the Pacific will be required to self-isolate if they show symptoms, within 14 days of arrival. This includes all Pacific Islands Forum members (except French Polynesia, category 1b), Associate Member Tokelau, and Observer Wallis and Futuna. (Category 2).

Those in New Zealand thinking about traveling overseas, should avoid all non-essential travel at this time.

 For anyone who arrived into New Zealand prior to this time they will need to follow the previous restrictions. The self-isolation requirement would therefore only apply to those arriving on Sunday 15 March and earlier, if they had travelled in or transited through China and Iran or had travelled in the Republic of Korea or Italy.

The new restrictions will be reviewed on Tuesday 31 March and then every 14 days after that date.

We are prepared for the possibility there might be a case in our community. If that were to occur we are confident we can put our plans in place and know we will be supported by regional health authorities and the Ministry of Education. East Taieri School will be following the guidelines set out in the Ministry of Education's Pandemic Planning Guide.

I am sure you are all keen to do what you can to prevent risk of infection. The best preventative steps are:

• wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and dry thoroughly
• avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
• avoid sharing anything that has come in contact with saliva, whether in your living or social environments
• stay home when you are sick and seek medical attention
• cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the rubbish
• get adequate sleep and eat well-balanced meals to ensure a healthy immune system.

If you want to know more about COVID-19 please make sure that any reading you are doing is from a reliable source. The Ministry of Health is the best source of information for New Zealand and they update this information regularly - https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/diseases-and-conditions/covid-19-novel-coronavirus

A reminder that anyone who is ill should not be attending school.

The COVID-19 symptoms are a fever, coughing and difficulty breathing. If anyone has these symptoms and has recently been to a country or area of concern, or have been in close contact with someone confirmed with COVID-19, please encourage them to contact Healthline (for free) on 0800 358 5453 (or +64 9 358 5453 for international SIMs) or their doctor immediately.

Enjoy the long weekend ahead with Otago Anniversary Day on Monday.

Ngā mihi nui

Jennifer