Admonished by Kieran Moore, Niagara medical officer stands by his increased safety measures in schools

Niagara’s beleaguered medical officer of well being says he's standing by his orders to boost COVID-19 security measures in colleges regardless of being admonished for his efforts by Ontario’s prime public well being official.

In a press release Thursday morning, Dr. Mustafa Hirji acknowledged a request from Dr. Kieran Moore to drop expanded masking, case administration and air high quality monitoring measures, however mentioned his orders stand.

“We recognize the suggestions of the Chief Medical Officer of Well being relating to these measures and have mentioned them with our college board companions,” mentioned Hirji’s assertion. “(We) can be continuing with these measures to be able to give kids, academics, and different faculty employees further safety as we efficiently resume in-person education.”

The assertion comes after a pointedly crucial Jan. 15 letter from Moore to Hirji circulated on social media — first by members of Niagara’s anti-vaccine group Wednesday night time after which Thursday morning by Ontario docs.

“We now have Ontario’s cmoh dressing down extremely competent native MOHs for following science to guard children and communities,” tweeted Dr. David Fisman, doctor and professor of epidemiology on the College of Toronto.

In his letter, Moore mentioned he was writing Hirji to specific his “concern along with your method to in-person faculty and childcare in Niagara.”

The letter, which signifies Moore and Hirji had spoken concerning the difficulty beforehand, says the Niagara physician has gone past provincial pointers about colleges and COVID-19, together with requiring a verified physician’s word for a pupil to be exempt from carrying a masks, one thing the province isn't recommending.

The letter additionally takes difficulty with Hirji’s plan to have his division monitor CO2 ranges in colleges as a sign of the effectiveness of air flow techniques. Moore mentioned there isn't any hyperlink between CO2 ranges and COVID-19 infections. Nonetheless, Fisman mentioned in an interview, the monitoring is a sign of the standard of the air flow system, not that the fuel causes infections.

The place air flow seems to wish enchancment, Niagara’s public well being division will present moveable HEPA filters, one thing Moore mentioned Hirji ought to get regional council approval for.

Nonetheless, as medical officer of well being in Niagara, Hirji controls a funds that's set yearly by regional council.

Moore additionally criticized Hirji’s orders to extend the period of time a cohort of scholars can be dismissed from colleges following a constructive COVID-19 check, to seven days from the provincial advice of 5.

“Whereas very disruptive to oldsters and youngsters when it occurs, its advantages in well being outweigh that disruption in our estimation,” mentioned a Jan 14 memo from Hirji to Niagara faculty boards.

Moore wrote that Niagara is the one jurisdiction in Canada to proceed to have seven-day dismissals and that he's apprehensive they'll put college students in danger.

“I'm involved that these measures will result in elevated harms to kids and youth within the Niagara Area and strongly urge you to rethink your method in alignment with provincial course,” wrote Moore.

The shorter isolation interval advisable by the province is at odds with data supplied Wednesday by Canada’s chief medical officer of well being, Dr. Theresa Tam, who famous an individual can stay contagious for as much as 10 days after an infection.

“The research that we’ve managed to amass, together with a latest one for Japan, counsel that the interval of communicability isn't any shorter than the opposite variants, as a result of the viral shedding and the viral load doesn’t lower actually till Day 10 following symptom onset or specimen assortment after the analysis,” Tam informed the Home of Commons well being committee.

Moore additionally criticized Hirji for putting measures in class however not the final group, saying solely 25 per cent of infections occur in lecture rooms.

Nonetheless, colleges have been closed by way of a lot of the Omicron surge so far, and there's not but clear knowledge on how the variant will unfold as colleges reopen.

When requested about his letter throughout a Thursday press convention, Moore mentioned he desires to make sure “a constant and chronic method so that oldsters, faculty boards, households can count on the identical degree of safety and care,” in Ontario.

“The aim of the communication was to hunt readability and search to hunt ongoing session and to be supportive of our native medical officers of well being, which we attempt to co-ordinate common conferences,” Moore mentioned.

Nonetheless, Moore’s letter didn't ask for readability, however urged the Niagara physician to reverse course.

Hirji and Moore haven't answered follow-up questions from Torstar.

Whereas Ontario’s prime public well being physician criticized Hirji’s resolution to transcend provincial pointers, Moore took comparable motion when he was the medical officer of well being for Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington in 2020.

That June, as COVID circumstances rose locally, Moore instituted a sweeping masking order for indoor public venues within the area. The province didn't institute such an order till October of that 12 months.

Medical officers of well being are empowered by the provincial Well being Safety and Promotion Act to take steps to restrict the unfold of a communicable ailments, together with putting orders on workplaces. Ontario Well being Minister Christine Elliott has mentioned on a couple of event she expects medical officers of well being to institute their very own measures past provincial guidelines based mostly on native contexts.

In Niagara, the place at the very least 32 individuals with COVID-19 have died within the final 11 days, 158 sufferers are in hospital with the virus, together with 26 in ICUs.

Lower than 45 per cent of Niagara kids 5 to 11 have acquired a single dose of a COVID vaccine.

It isn't clear how Moore’s letter got here to be shared by the Niagara anti-vaccine group Wednesday night. The letter was shared by Moore’s workplace with Niagara Area Chair Jim Bradley and Ontario deputy ministers of well being and training, together with the management of native faculty boards.

Hirji’s residence has been focused by anti-vaccine protests, which featured individuals yelling vulgarities at him over a megaphone and shining a strobe gentle into the house’s home windows.

Hirji has additionally confronted political criticism regionally for previous orders to struggle the unfold of COVID-19, together with from the mayor of Niagara Falls, who falsely claimed well being promotion act was “not the regulation,” and Hirji’s orders have been solely suggestions. Niagara mayors have attacked Hirji for commenting concerning the unfold of COVID-19 and the Niagara border with america.

Since Moore’s letter was shared broadly on social media, many confirmed help for Hirji. The hashtag #IstandwithDrHirji was used greater than 680 instances Thursday afternoon, and all three Niagara NDP MPPs — Jennie Stevens, Jeff Burch and Wayne Gates — revealed an open letter supporting Hirji.

“Hirji must be lauded for his initiative, not attacked by Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer,” the NDP letter mentioned. “Dr. Moore’s letter has Ford’s fingerprints throughout it. Dr. Hirji was proper to take further measures and Ford shouldn't be making an attempt to make colleges in Niagara much less protected.”