(FILE) Students of Apas National High School in Cebu City are back in their classrooms, still wearing face masks, during the start of in-person classes in August. 鈥擠ALE ISRAEL
Despite a Department of Education (DepEd) order making masks optional in classrooms, pediatricians on Tuesday urged parents to encourage their kids to continue wearing masks in schools as they warned of COVID-19鈥檚 long-term effects, such as multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children or MIS-C.
In a press briefing held a day after they made public their position paper on the DepEd order, the Philippine Pediatric Society (PPS) and Pediatric Infectious Disease Society of the Philippines (PIDSP) said that parents should know the importance of continuing to observe all preventive measures against diseases.
READ:Wearing a mask in classrooms will be optional 鈥� DepEd
鈥淲e need to educate [them] about the pros and cons鈥� They should wear masks for the protection of kids and their families,鈥� PPS president Dr. Florentina Ty said.
PIDSP president Dr. Fatima Gimenez noted that children who contracted COVID-19 could develop serious complications such as MIS-C, a rare disorder linked specifically to COVID-19 wherein organs such as the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin and eyes become inflamed. 鈥淸This] can have dire consequences鈥� That鈥檚 what we want to warn people about the consequences of COVID,鈥� Gimenez said.
On Monday, the DepEd clarified that despite its earlier order easing the mask mandate in schools, the decision to wear or not wear a mask would be left to the parents or guardians of students.
鈥淏ut as far as messaging is concerned, we will stick with [President Marcos鈥� Executive Order No. 7 which states that] masking is optional. We鈥檙e not saying not to wear masks, we鈥檙e saying it鈥檚 optional so we leave it to the parents or guardians of the learners to tell their children what they need to do,鈥� Michael Poa, DepEd spokesperson, said at a press briefing.
On the eve of the full implementation of in-person classes last week, Poa said that masks would be optional for public school students and personnel despite the reservations of some health experts.
The policy was formalized on Nov. 2 in DepEd Order No. 49, or the amendment to DepEd Order No. 39 regarding health and safety protocols in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. INQ