With students returning to school this week, parents of children who have had contact with a confirmed case of novel coronavirus are being urged to keep their children at home and monitor for symptoms.

UPDATE: The NSW Government has today requested that children who have visited China in the past two weeks not attend school or childcare services until 14 days have lapsed from their date of departure from China. 

Anyone who develops a fever, cough, sore throat or shortness of breath within 14 days of travel to Hubei Province or contact with a person with confirmed coronavirus, should immediately isolate themselves from other people, contact their GP or local emergency department or call the healthdirect helpline 1800 022 222.  

Read the NSW Government's full media release from this afternoon here

This is in addition to previous advice given by NSW Chief Health Officer, Dr Kerry Chant, who explained that any child who has been in contact with a person confirmed as having novel coronavirus must not attend school or childcare for 14 days after the last contact with the infected person.

“14 days represents the internationally recognised incubation period for the disease,” Dr Chant said. “After this time the child is considered to be not be at risk of infection.”

“The most common symptom is a fever. Other symptoms include, cough, sore throat and shortness of breath.”

Anyone who exhibits these symptoms should be isolated immediately from other people and seek medical attention as soon as possible.

Again, if you develop a fever, a cough, sore throat or shortness of breath within 14 days of travel to Wuhan or Hubei or contact with a person with confirmed coronavirus, you should immediately isolate yourself from other people. Contact your GP or your local emergency department or call the healthdirect helpline 1800 022 222 and seek medical attention as soon as possible.

Minister for Health, Brad Hazzard explained that NSW Health has processes in place to identify any close contacts of cases confirmed in Australia.

“Advice about not attending school would be provided to these close contacts,” he said.

As at the time of writing, there are currently four confirmed cases of novel coronavirus in NSW. All cases had travelled to Wuhan, China or had contact with a confirmed case in China.

Parents with concerns can contact their local Public Health Unit on 1300 066 055 for advice or visit the dedicated NSW Health information page on novel coronavirus here.

FAQs for parents with Children returning to school or child care

What if my child is unwell?

Any child who is unwell should not attend childcare or school. Seek medical attention as soon as possible.

What if my child was in contact with someone who has the coronavirus?

Any child, who has been in contact with a person confirmed as having novel coronavirus, should not attend school or childcare during the 14 days after last close contact with that person. Contact the local Public Health Unit on 1300 066 055 for advice.

Close contact is defined as 15 minutes face-to-face contact with a person with confirmed coronavirus in any setting, or sharing a closed space with a person with confirmed coronavirus for more than 2 hours.

What if my child is returning to school after visiting Wuhan with in the last 14 days?

School students (including boarding school students) returning from Wuhan who are well, and have not been in contact with a person with confirmed coronavirus, can continue to attend school provided that they follow the advice below.

If they develop a fever, a cough, sore throat or shortness of breath, within 14 days of returning the student should be immediately isolated from other people.

If the student is a boarder, the school should give the child a surgical mask if available and take the child to their usual GP or emergency department for assessment, and phone ahead so that ideally they can speak to the doctor so that the practice can make appropriate preparations to protect others.

If the student is not a boarder, the parents should be asked to give the child a surgical mask if available and take the child to their usual GP or emergency department as soon as possible, but to phone ahead so that ideally they can speak to the doctor and the practice can make appropriate preparations to protect others.

The doctor can assess the situation and may recommend that the student attend a nearby emergency department. If so call ahead before attending the emergency department.

In all cases the school should contact the local Public Health Unit on 1300 066 055 and provide details so that the Public Health Unit can follow up as necessary.