What Sanitary and Hygienic Standards Should Be Maintained in Schools and Kindergartens

The Health and Labor Inspection Body of Armenia urges the heads of educational institutions implementing preschool and general education programs to ensure compliance with sanitary standards and regulations established by the order of the Minister of Health of Armenia in the context of resuming the educational process.

In particular:

• During the season of acute respiratory infections (autumn-spring), the institution's nurse must ensure daily active identification of children with symptoms characteristic of acute respiratory infections (cold, cough, fever, sneezing, weakness).
• During the peak of seasonal illness, the nurse must conduct examinations of children and teaching staff at the entrance of the institution.
• In case of symptoms characteristic of acute respiratory infectious diseases (cold, cough, fever, sneezing, weakness), sick children and staff are immediately transferred to a medical point, and the appropriate outpatient-clinical medical assistance service is notified.
• In kindergartens, the morning admission of children should be conducted by the educator, who inquires about the child's health status, examines the neck and skin, and measures the temperature of all children in the nursery group, while in the preschool group it is done based on medical indications (Order No. 857 of the Minister of Health of Armenia dated December 20, 2002, point 11.3).
• Children identified as ill or suspicious during the morning examination are not admitted. During the day, unwell children are isolated in specially designated rooms. Depending on their health status, children remain in the isolation room until their parent arrives or until they are hospitalized.

At the same time, sanitary and hygienic measures should be implemented in preschool and school institutions:

• Ventilation of the room three times a day for 8-10 minutes when children are absent.
• Wet cleaning of the rooms twice a day.
• Children should spend 4 hours more outdoors than usual, maintaining group separation principles.
• Promotion of a healthy lifestyle and dissemination of medical-hygienic knowledge.