Kids, COVID and what Houston schools will look like next fall
Given COVID vaccines and variants, how different will school be this year? How does the situation look up close? What should parents keep in mind — both this summer and in the fall? To find out, we spoke with nurse practitioner Jessica Ginn, one of the interim senior directors for school-based health pediatrics at Legacy Community Health.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
What do you do at Legacy Community Health?
I’m currently one of the directors of our school-based health program. Next year we’re going into 33 schools in three school systems: KIPP, YES Prep, and Galena Park. We operate clinics on campus that do a variety of pediatric and behavioral health services.
I’m also a pediatric nurse practitioner, and have been working at one of the Legacy school-based clinics for the last
So if a kid has a health problem and goes to the school nurse’s office, they’d see you?
Maybe. All the schools have a school medical assistant, so if a kid is sick, they go to that office. Then if their parent wants them to come to our clinic, we have nurse practitioners on campus. The nurse practitioners can diagnose, treat, send in antibiotics — all that kind of stuff — right there on campus.
With all the changes in the pandemic, how do you expect this fall to be different from last fall?
The biggest difference that I’ve noticed since the fall is that we’re seeing a decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases daily due to the increase in people getting vaccinated. Also, we have learned that schools can safely reopen without becoming super-spreaders of COVID-19. That’s a really good thing.
Does the delta variant change anything for schools?
The delta variant is highly contagious and has been spreading in the United States recently, mostly through unvaccinated people. Getting vaccinated is the best way to prevent the spread of the delta variant.
But kids under 12 still can’t be vaccinated?
Correct. Right now it is 12 and above.
So for kids who are not able to be vaccinated, we recommend making sure everyone else is vaccinated to protect them. And also doing everything that we have been doing the last year: wearing their masks, washing their hands, socially distancing.
Do you expect kids to wear masks to school this fall?
In Texas, schools can no longer require masks. But at the school where I worked, the school’s kids were still wearing masks at the end of the school year, even though it was no longer a requirement.
So I feel like a large majority of the kids will wear masks next year. It’s a habit now, and it made a lot of us feel safer going to school. Plus some kids never even went to school last year because of COVID, and it will make them feel safer too.
What sorts of questions have you been hearing from parents and other people who are looking for advice?
The most common question that I’m getting now is “What are the side effects of getting the COVID vaccine for children?”
The common side effects are the same as they are for the adults: injection site soreness and feeling a bit like you have the flu — fever, headache, chills.
The CDC also acknowledged that myocarditis and pericarditis are rare side effects. Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart, and pericarditis is the inflammation of the lining around the heart.
Those side effects are extremely rare. They’re mostly seen in adolescent males or young adults. For the patients who did actually get those side effects, the symptoms have been very mild and they have resolved with little or no medical treatment. So that’s reassuring.
We also know that COVID-19 can cause myocarditis and pericarditis. And we know that COVID-19 can cause death in children, as well as hospitalizations and lingering side effects. So the benefits of getting the vaccine definitely outweigh the risk of getting myocarditis or pericarditis.
What sorts of measures are you recommending for places where kids gather — camps, schools or anywhere else?
The first thing is, everyone 12 and above — that includes workers, students, patients — should be vaccinated if possible.
For people too young to be vaccinated: Keep doing the same things we’ve been doing: wearing your mask, socially distancing, washing your hands.
For something like a camp: Instead of indoor activities, do outdoor activities. If it’s a soccer camp, bring your own ball. If it’s a baseball camp, bring your own bat. Don’t share your water.
Those kinds of things will help us protect our kids.
Next week, I’ll be interviewing virologist Ben Neuman, of Texas A&M. One of the world’s top coronavirus experts, he’s happy to explain high-level science to the rest of us. So if you have a question for him, please email it to lisa.gray@chron.com.