A study being pre-published online this week in Pediatrics found low transmission of COVID-19 at North Carolina day camps that diligently adhered to multilayered safety strategies, including wearing face coverings during indoor and outdoor activities. The study, “Symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 Transmission in Youth and Staff Attending Day Camps,” to be published in the April 2021 Pediatrics (published online Feb. 3), describes how the YMCA remained safely open in 31 North Carolina sites from March through August, 2020, a time of rapid regional rising of COVID-19 incidence. The researchers found only 19 COVID-19 cases among 6,830 youth (mean age 8.5 years) and staff (mean age 27 years) during this timeframe. The majority of participant and staff cases were primary cases, likely reflecting community or household transmission. Researchers noted that the camps implemented multilayered strategies, including universal mask wearing for children and staff, exposures and symptom/temperature screening upon arrival, frequent hand hygiene, environmental cleaning/disinfecting, physical distancing, small cohorts, and personal protective equipment for adults supervising youth who became ill with symptoms while at camp. Staff also completed COVID-19 education workplace trainings. Researchers conclude that COVID-19 transmission can be mitigated in childcare settings during times of high community incidence, suggesting that the benefit of in-person programming for supporting youth learning, mental health and school retention, may outweigh the risk of viral spread. The study also highlights the critical importance of academic partnerships with community organizations for promoting pediatric health. The study is a pre-publication version of an article that has undergone peer review and been accepted for publication but is not the final version of record. Pre-published articles can be found here: https://www.aappublications.org/cc/covid-19
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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.