Sask. parents, teachers concerned after province's quiet change to school outbreak reporting

Like many other Saskatchewan parents throughout the pandemic, Rebecca Penner frequently found herself checking the province's COVID-19 school outbreak website. But that stopped late last month.

The Regina mother of two said it was around that time that she noticed the province had quit listing how many cases there were in schools where an outbreak was declared.

"There was no explanation as to why the way they reported on [outbreaks] changed," Penner said. "It gives me the impression that [the provincial government] is trying to hide something — even if there's nothing to hide."

Since the changes to the website, Penner said both she and other families with school-age children are forced to do their own math when it comes to COVID-19 cases in schools. That means adding up the case notifications they receive through their school administration and by word of mouth.

"I've kind of given up looking at the government's website because the information's not transparent," she said.

According to the province, the change was made Nov. 29. 

"Case counts will be updated until an outbreak has been declared," a Ministry of Health spokesperson said in an email to CBC News late Monday afternoon, quoting a line under its website's "COVID-19 Cases in Schools" heading.

"The website change does not change the approach to the outbreak response."

The province noted that school divisions are expected to work with their local medical health officers on how to deal with an outbreak, including on how to cut down transmission.

It said it's up to schools to advise their community of any outbreaks. 

"Parents with questions about case numbers in their child's specific school should contact the school," the Ministry of Health said.

'Contempt and a disregard for the public'

Andrew Deobald, a stay-at-home parent of three kids in Aberdeen, Sask., said it's concerning to see the province changing the way it's reporting on COVID-19 outbreaks in schools without clearly notifying residents.

"It lowers the level of trust I have in my government to keep myself and the public informed," he wrote in a series of online messages to CBC News. 

"It shows contempt and a disregard for the public."

Deobald said the change in school outbreak reporting is contributing to his decision to keep homeschooling his two school-age children. 

"Without that trust, I feel I have to keep my kids home until they are fully vaccinated," he said.

Education sector also kept out of the loop, STF says

Educators and school boards across the province were also not notified of the changes in how the government was reporting on outbreaks in schools, according to the Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation (STF).

"Information during a pandemic is critical for people to be able to make good choices," said STF president Patrick Maze. "If this change has been made without properly being rolled out and explained — both on the website, but also to schools and the education sector — then that's a concern."

Maze said specific case numbers are vital for parents to know and should be added back to the website.

"If it's only one or two isolated cases in a school, then maybe that would put them at ease … but if it's 15 or 20 cases in a school, then that's obviously more cause for concern," he said. 

Meanwhile, Maze said that teachers are also getting frustrated by the province's delays in posting about outbreaks on its website.

"It is a frustration to know that your school is in an outbreak and not to see it appear on the website for days," he said.

Maze said he understands that the health-care system has been strained due to the pandemic's fourth wave, but that it has also meant many teachers have had to do their own classroom contact tracing.

"It's not a teacher's responsibility to be making those types of calls," he said. "Adding one more thing to their plate is just unacceptable."