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A P R I L 2021 ME S S E NG E R
If testing is not done, adults with fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat or shortness of breath are to remain in isolation at home and stay away from others for 10 days, or until symptoms improve and they have been without a fever for at least 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications, whichever is longer. Individuals with any other symptoms on the COVID-19 symptom list should remain home until symptoms resolve. Will healthcare workers who are not immunized be excluded from work if they do not get immunized or if there is a COVID-19 Outbreak in the workplace? Immunization is voluntary for all Albertans. There are many reasons a person may not be immunized for COVID19. For example, individuals may be waiting for their scheduled appointment time to receive the vaccine, may have declined the vaccine, or the vaccine may be contraindicated or there are precautions to consider (e.g., pregnancy, allergy to components of the vaccine). Although current outbreak management guidelines from Alberta Health Services indicate that health care workers who are not immunized against influenza need to either take influenza antivirals or be excluded from work when there is an outbreak in the facility. Currently, there are no antivirals recommended for COVID-19. At this time, exclusion of workers who are not immunized against COVID-19 is not required due to the measures already in place to prevent transmission. These measures include active and passive health assessment screening, staying home when sick, continuous masking, hand hygiene, contact and droplet precautions with appropriate Personal Protective Equipment. These measures must be maintained as there is currently limited evidence on the duration of protection of COVID-19 vaccines and the effectiveness of these vaccines in preventing asymptomatic infection and reducing transmission of other strains of the virus.
Submitted by: Darlene Carifelle- Health Board Coordinator Peavine Metis Settlement
Additional information about COVID Vaccine Sequencing can be found in: APPENDIX A - COVID Vaccine Sequencing for Healthcare Workers
O u r L a n d . O u r C u l t u r e . O u r F u t u r e .
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