School District Improving COVID Notification Letter

In a statement Sunday, Pasadena Unified School District Superintendent Brian McDonald said the school district is revising its COVID-19 notification letter.

A copy of a notification letter sent to Pasadena Now by a local resident opened by informing a parent of a confirmed case in a local school which then told the parent that although their child has not been identified as a close contact the student may have had been exposed in this case if the child was in certain locations.

“We are aware of the fact that parents are finding the notification letters to be unclear and we are in the process of revising them,” McDonald said.

According to McDonald, in the event of a positive case, individuals (those in close contact) will be notified directly by their school or district staff and will receive notification that may include self-isolation and/or quarantine directions and other important information.

PUSD is also notifying students and staff who were enrolled in or in a shared space with a positive case. In the event of a higher concern regarding exposure, McDonald said the district is committed to keeping those involved and the broader community informed.

Infections among children are skyrocketing across the country. Last week 180,000 cases were reported.

McDonald said transparency is a core belief in the district.

“We will provide as much information as possible so that you can make informed decisions for your children,” McDonald said. “This includes releasing the number of positive cases as often as possible.”

Cases are reported on the district’s COVID-19 dashboard which is updated twice each week.

So far, 344 students and staff across the district have been forced to quarantine.

According to the school district, the dashboard will soon be updated to make it more accessible with graphics and charts. The school district is trying to keep local students safe from the Delta variant while attempting to keep local schools open.

Los Angeles County’s latest COVID-19 numbers show 2,781 new cases and 10 additional deaths, though health officials said the data may reflect delays in weekend reporting.

In a bit of good news, the number of coronavirus patients in county hospitals dropped for the fourth consecutive day Sunday, declining from 1,746 on Saturday to 1,722, according to state figures.

Sunday’s latest figures brought the county’s totals to 1,383,186 cases and 25,071 fatalities since the pandemic began, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

On Saturday, the department once again reminded residents that vaccinated people have greater protection against negative health outcomes should they contract the virus.

“Everyone who is not yet vaccinated needs to know they do not have the same protection as vaccinated people,” said Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.