Dr Phil Kieran: Do I need to test my child for covid? 

The rules around school children testing have changed during the pandemic and this can make it difficult to know precisely what is required of you at any one time. It is critical to remember that the public health guidelines are the bare minimum rules we are required to follow.

The current guidelines say that for a school-age child, there is no need to test for covid if they are a potential contact. The guidelines also recommend that if your child has an isolated cough and no other symptoms, they don’t need to test or isolate. However, if they also have a fever, diarrhoea or start to feel generally unwell, they should stay at home and avoid contact with others. If this is the case, you may assume they could have covid and should behave as if they do. They will need to stay out of school and minimise contact until their symptoms have resolved.  

(It is OK to go back if the runny nose or cough persists, as this can take weeks to settle fully after any viral respiratory infection.)

If your child attends a special education school or respite care, they must be tested. (There is a good chance public health has already contacted you about this if it is the case.) If you work with vulnerable populations like the very young, the very old or in a healthcare setting, you might want to test your child to see if you need to be concerned about contracting covid. It would be reasonable to wait until you develop symptoms before testing but this will be guided by your judgement and the rules of the organisation you work for.

Healthcare workers may consider intermittently testing for covid to protect their clients — I test whenever I feel unwell.

The reasons for the changes in testing requirements are down to the fact that the vaccination programme has been very successful in reducing the mortality rate and hospitalisation rate due to covid infection. This means we can return to normality with a better understanding of each individual’s role in reducing the spread of infection. Now is a great time to check if you are due a covid booster and if so staying up to date is extremely important.

For parents, this is an ideal opportunity to encourage kids to have good respiratory etiquette, which will reduce infections spread by droplets and encourage them to play outdoors and in well-ventilated places to help protect them from aerosol viruses such as covid.

• If you have a question for Dr Phil Kieran, please send it to parenting@examiner.ie