KIEL. To further contain the coronavirus infection chain, the state government decided today (March 13) that schoolchildren and kindergarten children should stay home starting Monday . The following rules will apply from next Monday:
Classes at schools from grades 7 to 13 will be suspended from Monday, March 16th, until the end of the Easter holidays (April 19th). Students will not have classes at school. All final exams, especially the Abitur (university entrance exam), will be postponed to the scheduled alternative dates (make-up exams) after the Easter holidays. The state government is committed to ensuring that all students can complete their exams and obtain their qualifications during the current school year, thus enabling them to continue their education.
Classes for grades 1-6 will be suspended from Monday, March 16th, until the end of the Easter holidays (April 19th). For children in grades 1-6, childcare will continue to be available at schools until Wednesday, March 18th, provided the following conditions are met: Both parents, or a single parent, work in a sector essential for maintaining critical infrastructure and these parents cannot arrange alternative childcare. These sectors include, for example, healthcare infrastructure (including hospitals, nursing homes, and medical device companies), utilities (energy, water, food, and pharmaceuticals), the justice system, police, fire departments, and childcare workers. The state, in consultation with the schools, will review the further procedures and any remaining needs by Wednesday, March 18th.
Childcare at daycare centers will be suspended from Monday, March 16th, until the end of the Easter school holidays (April 19th). For these children, childcare will continue to be available at the facilities until Friday, March 20th, if the following conditions are met: Both parents, or a single parent, work in a sector essential for maintaining critical infrastructure and these parents cannot arrange alternative childcare. These sectors include, for example, healthcare infrastructure (including hospitals, nursing homes, and medical device companies), utilities (energy, water, food, and pharmaceuticals), the justice system, police, fire departments, and childcare workers/teachers. The state, in coordination with the schools, will review the further procedures and any remaining needs by Friday, March 20th.
Support centers will continue to offer necessary support as needed, due to their individual support structure.
Schools and daycare centers are currently being informed about the procedure.
The state cabinet will decide this afternoon on a comprehensive package of measures to contain the coronavirus. The state government will provide further information afterwards.
As part of the package of measures teaching at universities and operations at state museums and opera houses will be suspended – implementation is currently underway following orders from the Ministry in coordination with the relevant parties. Students are not to come to the universities. The relevant parties will inform the universities about the details. This will also be reported at the Cabinet press conference this afternoon. Further information/decree can be found here:
www.schleswig-holstein.de/coronavirus
As part of the package of measures, Minister Garg has also called on general hospitals in Schleswig-Holstein to suspend or immediately reduce planned admissions in order to maintain capacity for COVID-19 patients. The federal government will swiftly ensure, through legislative measures, that the resulting financial consequences for hospitals are compensated by statutory health insurance, or that bonuses are paid for additional capacity.
The ministry also ordered that hospitals ban on visitors or restrictive limitations on visits to protect patients and staff,
Citizen hotline of the Federal Ministry of Health 030 / 346 465 100.
Additionally, at the state level, a citizen hotline is at 0431 / 79 70 00 01 (weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.). Information for professionals, including...
Technical information from the RKI: www.rki.de/ncov
Information for citizens: https://www.infektionsschutz.de/coronavirus-2019-ncov.html
and https://www.schleswig-holstein.de/coronavirus
Teaching and examination operations
Kiel University (CAU) is cancelling all in-person classes until April 19. Furthermore, all exams are postponed until further notice. This does not apply to online exams or individual exams. The restrictions on university operations are based on a decree issued by the Ministry of Health to contain the dynamic spread of COVID-19 infections.
For the upcoming examination period, only exams without in-person attendance (e.g., term papers, theses, etc.) and individual exams (e.g., oral exams) will take place. All other exams are postponed until further notice. At this time, it is not yet possible to say when regular classes can resume or when canceled exams can be rescheduled. We will endeavor to minimize any resulting disadvantages. Exams that cannot take place as planned may be replaced by alternative, equivalent forms of assessment. You will be informed of this by the relevant authorities.
Where appropriate, digital teaching/learning formats, guided self-study, or similar methods will be used to compensate for the lack of in-person instruction as much as possible. You will be informed about this in due course.
Travelers returning from risk areas
The state of Schleswig-Holstein has regulations regarding the handling of travelers returning from risk areas and areas particularly affected by the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) . These regulations stipulate that contact-reducing measures must be implemented for individuals who have returned from designated risk areas within the last 14 days. This includes a 14-day ban on travelers returning from risk areas or areas particularly affected by the spread of the coronavirus from entering certain public facilities, including universities . This also applies to the CAU campus. If you belong to this group or if someone in your immediate circle is ill, we urge you to comply with this ban in the interest and for the protection of all members of the university.
The list of risk areas is regularly updated on the Robert Koch Institute website: https://www.rki.de/DE/Content/InfAZ/N/Neuartiges_Coronavirus/Risikogebiete.html
If you have attended events at Kiel University (CAU) within the 14-day period since returning from a region that has been declared a risk area (even recently), please inform your lecturer immediately so that other participants in the event can also be informed that they have had contact with a returning traveler and can take this information into account if they develop symptoms. If you are unable to reach your lecturer, please contact corona@uni-kiel.de .
Note: The number 116117 is a medical emergency number for people experiencing symptoms of a (coronavirus) illness. If you are coming from a risk area and are experiencing symptoms similar to a cold, please call this number.
We will continue to keep you informed about current measures taken by Kiel University (CAU), including those related to examinations and teaching. Please check the CAU website regularly: https://www.uni-kiel.de/de/coronavirus . The FAQ section there is continuously updated. If you cannot find an answer there, please send your question to the central email address: corona@uni-kiel.de
Background:
Based on the experience gained during the influenza pandemic, the National Pandemic Plan defines the following objectives for each phase of action. In practice, these phases overlap; there is no single point in time when all measures transition simultaneously from Phase 1 to Phase 2. Regional spread and the capacity of healthcare systems both play a role in this process.
- Early detection and containment of the spread of the virus (“detection & containment”) – measures include, for example, identifying contacts of people who have tested positive, ordering quarantine or isolation. This can also include canceling events. Local health authorities can also make such decisions if they deem it appropriate, for example, depending on the participant group, such as whether they come from high-risk areas.
- Protection of particularly vulnerable groups – in the next phase of an ongoing infection, the focus will be on the special protection of people at higher risk of severe illness, such as the elderly or those with pre-existing conditions. This will be achieved, for example, through precautionary measures to reduce contact and specific information on hygiene measures. This also includes bans on or restrictions on entering hospitals and nursing homes.
- Mitigation of consequences – this focuses particularly on the treatment of those who are ill and ensuring the healthcare system is used efficiently. With an increasing number of cases, more severe cases are also to be expected. Healthcare structures are preparing for this, for example, by postponing planned hospital treatments if necessary.
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