Covid Protocols

The novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, causes a viral respiratory illness called COVID-19, which can make people sick with flu-like and other symptoms. The virus spreads easily when an infected person sneezes, coughs, or speaks, sending tiny droplets into the air. These droplets can land in the nose, mouth, or eyes of someone nearby and cause illness. The virus can also be caught from airborne virus, when small particles of infectious virus remain suspended in the air and people inhale them. People can also become infected if they touch an infectious droplet on a surface and then touch their own nose, mouth, or eyes.

Some of the symptoms of COVID-19 are cough, fever, shortness of breath, and new loss of taste or smell. Some people with mild cases may have no symptoms at all yet still can spread the virus. Staying at least six feet away from people outside of your household, covering your nose and mouth with a face covering, and washing hands often with soap and water can help stop COVID-19 from spreading in the workplace.

COVID-19 Prevention

Trackers Earth is committed to protecting our employees and preventing the spread of COVID-19 at our workplace. We developed this program to reduce our workers’ risk of catching and spreading this virus. We encourage employees to share information about potential COVID-19 hazards at our workplace and assist in evaluating these hazards. We will investigate all workplace illnesses and correct hazards that are identified. We stay informed on the virus presence in our community as well as recommendations made by national and local health agencies. We review and update this plan as necessary.

Designation

Local Directors offer the authority and responsibility for implementing this plan in the greater Portland region. All managers and supervisors are responsible for implementing this plan in their assigned work areas and ensuring employees’ questions are answered in a language they understand.

All employees are required to follow the policies and procedures laid out in this plan, use safe work practices, and assist in maintaining a safe work environment.

Recording

Keep accurate daily logs for each cohort. These logs must be maintained for a minimum of four weeks after the end of the program and must include the following information to support contact tracing, if necessary:

• Youth name
• Drop-off and pickup time for each youth
• Name of adult completing both drop off and pick up (adult signature not required)
• Adult emergency contact information for each youth
• Names of all staff that interact with a cohort of children (including floater staff) during the day
• Daily health checks of each child, noting if check was a pass or fail (do not note specific information)
• If transportation is provided by the program, document names of all other riders and their contact information (if not recorded elsewhere).

Transport

Comply with the Ready Schools, Safe Learners Guidance, Section 2i, Transportation if providing transportation services.

Participate Restrictions

Restrict from the program any youth or staff known to be a confirmed close contact of an individual with COVID-19 or who has been exposed (e.g., by a household member, friend or relative) to COVID-19 within the preceding 14 days.

• Any youth or staff with a confirmed COVID-19 exposure within this timeframe should be quarantined and restricted from participation for up to 14 days from their last exposure. Although a 14-day quarantine is the safest option to prevent the spread of COVID-19 to others, the local public health authority (LPHA) may allow close contacts who have not developed any symptoms to end quarantine after 10 days without any testing, or after 7 days with a negative result on a COVID-19 viral test collected within 48 hours before ending quarantine, with the following exceptions:
  • Fully vaccinated people who had an exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 are not required to quarantine if they meet the following criteria:
    • They have received both doses of a two-dose COVID-19 vaccine (or one dose of a single-dose vaccine), AND
    • It has been at least 14 days since their final dose of COVID-19 vaccine AND
    • They have no COVID-19 symptoms
  • Fully vaccinated people who do not quarantine should still watch for symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days following an exposure. If they experience COVID-19 symptoms, they should follow the guidance for people with symptoms (see immediately below).
  • Close contacts who themselves had a previous confirmed or presumptive COVID-19 case (verified by a positive viral COVID-19 test and/or LPHA) and have completed their isolation are not required to quarantine if the new exposure happened within 90 days of symptom onset or first positive test, whichever is earlier, for their original case
• Communicate to staff not to report to work in person and communicate to parents not to bring their child to the program if they currently have or recently had an illness with COVID-19 symptoms.
  • A staff person or child with COVID-19 symptoms should stay home for at least 10 days after illness starts and until 24 hours after fever is gone, without use of fever-reducing medicine, and COVID-19 symptoms have resolved.
  • Staff or youth who have a cough that is not a new-onset cough (e.g. asthma, allergies, etc.), do not need to be excluded from the program. Programs may choose to collect information about existing conditions that cause coughing and runny nose on intake forms.
• Report to and consult with the LPHA regarding cleaning and possible classroom or program closure if anyone who has entered the program is diagnosed with COVID-19.
• Report to LPHA any illness consistent with COVID-19 among youth program staff or students who attended youth programs within the previous 14 days.=

General

The following guidelines:

• We must provide hand sanitizer, handwashing facilities, tissues and garbage receptacles that are easily accessible to both youth and staff.
• Require all persons in the program to frequently wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds (e.g., after using the restroom, before and after meals, after coming inside, after sneezing, blowing the nose or coughing).
  • Alcohol-based hand-sanitizer (60 to 95%) may be used as an alternative to handwashing, except when eating, preparing or serving food and after using the restroom. If soap and water is not available (e.g. back country camp), alcohol-based hand sanitizer may be used; however, every effort should be made to facilitate soap and water handwashing.
• Remind staff and youth often to do the following:
  • Cover coughs and sneezes, even when wearing a mask, with a tissue or elbow;
  • Throw any used tissue away immediately into a garbage receptacle; and
  • Clean hands after covering coughs and sneezes, and after throwing away used tissues.
• Minimize contact during drop-off and pick-up by:
  • Requiring parents to remain outside of the building for sign-in and sign-out of their children.
  • Requiring parents or caregivers to maintain physical distancing.
  • Opening drop-off and pick-up times to a larger window.
  • Limiting use of commonly touched objects (writing implements, clipboards, etc.) and clean regularly.
  • Providing hand hygiene stations at the entrance of the facility — outside or immediately inside — so that children and staff can clean their hands as they enter.
  • Increase circulation of outdoor air as much as possible by opening windows and doors, using fans and employing other methods. See the CDC page on ventilation recommendations.
  • Do not open windows and doors if doing so poses a safety or health risk (for example, allowing pollen in or exacerbating asthma symptoms) to campers using the facility.
• In the event that there is a single case or a cluster of cases of COVID-19 in a program, the program must partner with the LPHA, who will advise on any need for isolation or quarantine of person(s) or cohort(s) and provide support with ongoing COVID-19 mitigation efforts. In some situations, full program closure could be required; careful observance of all guidance is necessary to avoid this scenario.

Face masks and face coverings:

Staff members/counselors must wear a mask, face covering or face shield in accordance with the Statewide Mask, Face Covering, Face Shield Guidance. All program youth are required to wear a mask, face covering or face shield when participating in activities indoors. Program youth are required to wear a mask, face covering or face shield when outdoors and may come within six (6) feet of distance with someone from outside their household.

• Youth are not required to wear a mask, face covering or face shield when participating in an activity that makes wearing a mask, face covering or face shield not feasible, such as when swimming or playing a brass or woodwind instrument. However, additional steps should be taken, like increasing physical distancing (to greater than six (6) feet), more frequent cleaning, reducing the size of the cohort, or doing the activity outdoors, per the Ready Schools, Safe Learners Guidance, Section 5f.
• Programs should make an effort to provide a face covering to youth who do not have access to a face covering or forget to bring one.
• Face coverings are preferred over face shields because they provide better containment of small droplets and aerosols that can be produced while talking.
  • Face shields without any other face covering are an acceptable alternative only when a person has a medical condition that prevents them from wearing a mask or face covering, when people need to see mouth and tongue motions in order to communicate, or when an individual is speaking to an audience for a short period of time and clear communication is otherwise not possible.
• Youths of any age should not wear a mask, face covering or face shield if:
  • They have a medical condition that makes it hard for them to breathe;
  • They have a disability that prevents them from wearing a mask, face covering or face shield;
  • They are unable to remove the mask, face covering or face shield by themselves; or 7 of 13 OHA2351P05202021 ▪ They are sleeping.
• Programs cannot restrict access to activities and instruction for children who cannot wear a mask, face covering or face shield. Staff and youth who have a medical condition that makes it hard to breathe or a disability that prevents the individual from wearing a mask, face covering or face shield can request an accommodation from the program to enable full and equal access to services, transportation and facilities open to the public. A reasonable modification does not include simply allowing a staff or youth access to activities or instruction without a mask, face covering or face shield.

Screening

Ensure all youth and staff verify that they are symptom free and have not had any known exposure to individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 during the 14-day period prior to arrival on camp.

• Check for new COVID-19 symptoms for anyone entering the program facility/area or working with youth and staff. This can be done visually as well as by asking children and staff about any new symptoms or close contact with someone with COVID-19. For children, confirmation from a parent/caregiver or guardian can also be appropriate. Staff members can self-screen and attest to their own health, but regular reminders of the importance of daily screening must be provided to staff.
  • Direct children and staff to stay home if they have COVID-19 symptoms. COVID19 symptoms are as follows: ▪ Primary symptoms of concern: cough, fever (temperature of 100.4°F or higher) or chills, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, or new loss of taste or smell.
  • Note that muscle pain, headache, sore throat, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, new nasal congestion, and runny nose are also symptoms often associated with COVID-19. More information about COVID-19 symptoms is available from the CDC.
• If a youth or staff member exhibits or develops a new cough (e.g., unrelated to pre-existing condition such as asthma), fever, shortness of breath or other primary symptoms of COVID-19 during the day/class session, separate from others and send them home as soon as possible.
  • While waiting for a sick child to be picked up, a staff member must stay with the youth in an area away from others. The caregiver must wear a face covering and should remain as far away as safely possible from the youth (preferably at least six (6) feet), while remaining in the same room or outdoor area.
  • The sick youth or staff are strongly encouraged to get tested. If they test positive, or do not have testing performed, they must stay home for at least 10 days after illness started and until 24 hours after fever and COVID-19 symptoms (fever, cough, shortness of breath, and diarrhea) have resolved without the use of medication.
• Ensure that the program has flexible sick-leave and absentee policies that allow staff to stay home while sick or required to quarantine.
• Report to and work with the LPHA about cleaning and possible need for closure if anyone who has entered the program facility is diagnosed with COVID-19.
• Report to the LPHA any cluster of illness among the program staff or youth.

Physical distancing and cohorting

The cohort may change no more frequently than once per week (e.g., for programs operating on a weekly schedule)..

• Programs hosting different morning and afternoon groups may be offered. Sanitation steps must be taken between these sessions.
• Before and after care must be carefully managed to keep youth in the same cohort in which they will spend their day.
• A program can have multiple cohorts if the facility or site can accommodate physical distancing for the number of youth hosted. Each cohort must have at least one staff member who is continuously supervising the group.
• Youth meals and activities occur within the same cohort.
• We are not required to provide separate restrooms for each cohort. However, restroom use must be limited to one cohort at a time.
  • Open restroom windows and operate built-in fans, as feasible, to improve ventilation.
  • We recommend least 15 minutes between restroom use by different cohorts. Youth will not be wearing face coverings when using the restrooms for activities like showering and brushing teeth. Opening doors and windows between use by different cohorts can reduce aerosols in the restrooms and minimize the spread of COVID-19.
• Before and after care: Cohorts must be limited to no more than 30 youth at a given time. Youth cannot be part of more than two cohorts (including transportation) in any given week.
• No staff member is permitted to interact with more than three cohorts in a given day and five in a given week.
• If multiple cohorts are checking in to a youth program at the same time, designate separate spaces during check-in for each cohort to maintain physical distancing requirements.
• Ensure that each cohort does not mix with any other group when indoors. When feasible, cohorts that are indoors should remain in one space for the duration of the day, or only use indoor spaces that have not been used by other cohorts that day.
• If multiple cohorts join for outdoor programs or activities, ensure that all people are wearing face coverings and maintaining six (6) feet physical distancing to the maximum extent possible.
• Minimize the number of staff interacting with each group of youth. If possible, staff should be dedicated to a single group and not move between groups. If “floater staff” or different staff rotate with the cohort, they must wash their hands prior to entering the space with the cohort of youth.
• No outside visitors may enter the program, except for critical service providers such as medical staff or emergency personnel and visitors, vendors, and others essential for safe and effective operations of the program. Parents and guardians should not be allowed to enter the program except for emergencies.
• Support physical distancing during daily activities and classes and maintain at least six (6) feet of distance between individuals. For example, structure programming in the following ways:
  • Eliminate large group activities (larger than cohort of 30).
  • Increase the distance between youth during table work.
  • Plan activities that do not require close physical contact among multiple youth.
  • Minimize time standing in lines and take steps to ensure that six (6) feet of distance between youth is maintained.
  • Ensure more physical distance between participants for activities that include brass or woodwind instruments because these instruments may spread respiratory droplets farther than six (6) feet.
  • Use the largest spaces practical for group activities and hold activities outside if feasible.

Cleaning and disinfection

All programs are required to:

• Frequently clean high-touch surfaces (for example, indoor playground equipment, stationary climbing frames, door handles, drinking fountains and transport vehicles).
• Clean restrooms daily, prioritizing high-touch surfaces like stall handles, doorknobs, sink handles, and faucets.
• Disinfecting surfaces after cleaning is recommended if certain conditions apply, such as the space having been occupied by an individual with COVID-19.
• Use disinfectants that are included on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved list for the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.
  • Establishment operators may consider following the disinfection practices recommended by the Pediatric Environmental Health Safety Units.
  • Disinfect safely and correctly. Keep disinfectant products away from children following directions on the label, as specified by the manufacturer.
• Outdoor playground structures require normal routine cleaning and do not require disinfection. Shared equipment should be cleaned and/or disinfected frequently in accordance with CDC guidance.
• Avoid use of items (for example, soft or plush toys or pillows) that are not easily cleaned.