Important Updates Regarding SOWA's COVID-19 Response
by School's Out Washington | | Posted under
Dear Providers and Community Partners,
The health and wellbeing of our staff and community are our top priority. To do our part to slow the spread of the coronavirus, School’s Out Washington is taking extra precautions. We encourage all of our partners to stay informed and safe and help reduce stigma and misinformation. Additional resources are listed below.
For King and Snohomish County based trainings and events, School’s Out Washington (SOWA) will take the following steps to align with public health recommendations:
- For the month of March, we will convert as many meetings as possible into virtual meetings through online platforms. This may include coaching services and peer learning community meetings for Program Quality Initiatives. Email notifications will be sent to all registered attendees and updated on our website.
- For the next two weeks (through March 18), live trainings will be postponed or made virtual, when possible. Email notifications will be sent to all registered attendees and updated on our website.
- For Program Quality Initiatives, SOWA initiative leads will be sending out separate details for related events, trainings, and activities. Your initiative leads will be your primary point of contact for any updates and changes for your specific initiative.
- Assessments will continue. Assessors have been instructed not to come if they are sick and to practice diligent handwashing.
- Sites are encouraged to engage in virtual coaching when possible.
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We will continue to update training and event status on an ongoing basis. We will do our best to send out updates in a timely manner, however as information evolves, please note that this may not always be possible.
- For scheduled assessments and trainings, please notify SOWA as soon as possible if your site is closing or you need to reschedule your assessment.
SOWA will continue to monitor the CDC and local Public Health offices to align our response plans in both King/Snohomish County as well as other parts of Washington state as information evolves.
Precautions youth-serving organizations can take:
- Have staff and young people wash hands for at least 20 seconds immediately upon entering facility and regularly thereafter. Use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available. Learn more about how to reduce the spread of illness in child care settings.
- Establish procedures for children and staff who are sick at your site.
- Help children understand what the coronavirus is, what the risks are, and how they can keep themselves healthy. See this article from the Child Mind Institute for ideas.
Additional Resources
- See a compiled list of links and resources that we hope will be useful, including stigma reduction, fact sheets, guidance for schools and programs, and planning for your organization.
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Public Health – Seattle & King County (Public Health) is scheduling a weekly Community Partners Coronavirus Call on Mondays from 4:00p - 4:45p in response to requests from our community partners. This is an opportunity to hear updates from Public Health and for you to voice any questions and concerns you have, either for your own organization or the communities you serve.
https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/emergency-preparedness/Community-Resilience-Equity/community-communication-network.aspx
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For general information from King County Public Health Department:
https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/communicable-diseases/disease-control/novel-coronavirus.aspx
- If you think you or a family member were exposed to COVID-19, contact your primary care provider and call 1-800-525-0127 (WA State Dept. of Health) and press # for next steps. Unless it is an emergency, do not go to your nearest emergency room without calling ahead so they can take steps to provide you with the right treatment and protect others from a possible exposure.