NEW PALESTINE — Less than two hours into the first day of school on Monday, Aug. 3, Southern Hancock officials received word from the county health department that a New Palestine High School student had tested positive for COVID-19.
Why the student was allowed to enter the building when official test results had not been relayed properly to district officials is still in question.
District officials said the student’s family had received a doctor’s note to be able to attend classes starting Monday after taking the test in late July. However, district officials noted, the physician wrote the wrong length of a quarantine period on the note. The physician apparently “inadvertently” included an incorrect return-to-school date in the document, the district said.
Also, district officials said Hancock Health informed them the Hancock County Health Department had the results of a positive test for the student as early as Friday, July 31, but for some reason didn’t notify the family or the school district until 9:30 a.m. Monday morning, nearly two hours after the first day of school started.
“It’s been a calamity of errors,” superintendent Lisa Lantrip said. “We don’t want any of our kids to be exposed to this.”
Without confirming when the health department received information on the case, Crystal Baker, office manager and preparedness coordinator for the health department, told the Daily Reporter in an email that the department followed a procedure put in place by the state and took action as soon as the school corporation of the student who tested positive was identified.
If a COVID-19 test result is positive, the Indiana State Department of Health’s contact tracing team attempts to contact the patient to complete the case investigation, Baker said. If they’re unable to complete the investigation, it’s moved to a “lost to follow up” status, in which the local health department attempts to contact the individual.
As soon as school district officials got word of the positive result, Principal Jim Voelz and his staff immediately isolated the student and a handful of students sitting within 6 feet of the infected student. The student was wearing a mask as required by the district’s reentry plan.
All the students in the close proximity — an exact number was not released — and the student who tested positive will not be allowed back into school until they complete a 14-day quarantine after being symptom free for several days.
District officials said their plan to deal with a positive case at school worked.
“It took us less than a hour to evaluate all those close contacts and quarantine,” community relations director Wes Anderson said. If families did not hear from the school, it meant that student was not in close contact with the infected one.
The student with the positive test had been dropped off for school and had no idea they were infected, district officials said. They declined to specify the student’s gender or age.
The student’s physician is affiliated with the Hancock Physician Network. Officials with Hancock Health said they are conducting a full review of its test notification process to ensure compliance with reporting guidelines.
“Hancock Health is unified with our schools in keeping students, staff and families safe,” Hancock Health officials said in a news release it issued jointly with the school system on Monday afternoon.
Due to the long turn-around times of COVID-19 test results, Hancock Health will be implementing rapid turn-around testing within the next week to help ensure more timely results, the released noted.
District officials are reminding parents they should not send their children to school if they have a confirmed COVID-19 case in their home; if their student has pending test results of a COVID-19 test; or if their student is showing symptoms of COVID-19.
School was scheduled to proceed as scheduled at New Palestine High School and all other district buildings today (Tuesday, Aug. 4), officials said.
Dr. Sandra Aspy, Hancock County health officer, said if anyone has children or household members who have tested positive for COVID-19 or is awaiting test results and have questions about going to school or work, to call the county health department at 317-477-1125, their health care provider or school for guidance.
