N.Zealand: ‘Shutting schools no help in fighting virus'

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ANKARA (AA) – Shutting schools did not help New Zealand’s fight against coronavirus. On the contrary, it led to a spike in social issues, a recent government report has said.

New Zealand is under lockdown until Wednesday to stem spread of the deadly virus. The country has 1,445 infections while nine others have died due to coronavirus.

"Recently emerging evidence suggests closure of education institutions has a limited role in reducing COVID-19 morbidity and mortality," daily New Zealand Herald quoted a 16-page report by the Health Ministry.

Schools and childcare centers were closed as part of government measures to protect people from being infected by the deadly disease.

In its latest decision, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the lockdown will be slowly eased down starting next week.

“Closing schools and childcare centres probably had only a minimal effect on reducing COVID-19, but is causing major social damage,” the report noted.

The ministry has also supported the government’s move to open schools for children whose parents need to go back to work under “level 3 of the coronavirus alert system”.

“Educational institution closures come with significant and enduring adverse impacts on health, education, economic and social inequities,” the report added.



- Australia’s 3-week recovery

Nearly all COVID-19 patients in Australia recovered after a period of three weeks, a recent survey said.

New South Wales public health emergency operations center made thousands of calls to people weeks after they were initially diagnosed with coronavirus to find out how long it takes for them to recover, daily Sydney Morning Herald reported.

“Their preliminary analysis of the first 2,000 cases found 50% of those patients recovered after 16 days, 75% recovered after three weeks, and 95% reported they had recovered by week six,” the survey concluded.

Australia has 6,644 coronavirus cases and 72 others have died due to the illness.

Meanwhile, a doctor at St George Hospital tested positive for coronavirus on Tuesday. Those who were in contact with him were isolated.

In a related development, the country’s postal service Australia Post has witnessed an increase in deliveries by 80% amid the lockdown as people take to online shopping from home.