Comprehensive and safe school strategy during Covid-19 pandemic

Nha Trang Tourism College with nearly 3,000 students and more than 100 staff has focused on Covid-19 safety precautions and procedures to ensure teaching and learning in a safe and healthy environment.

 

Effective approaches 

 

Since the resurgence of Covid-19, Nha Trang Tourism College’s Party Committee and management board have taken pandemic prevention and control measures under the Government’s Directive and provincial People’s Committee’s guidance. The pandemic prevention and control task is included in the college Party Committee’s monthly  resolution. Based on the resolution, the management board of the college has implemented many comprehensive and practical measures following the provincial People’s Committee’s plan on adaption to the new normal, especially since the return of students for the school year 2021 – 2022.

 

 

To ensure the epidemic prevention and control based on the guidance of all levels, the Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control, the college has established a school steering board for Covid-19 response, issued a set of evaluation criteria and set up Covid-19 prevention and control teams at school. Besides, 100% of the college staff, teachers and students have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 together with compulsory health declaration every day.

 

The college has also installed automatic hand washing machines at the doorways and made sure hand sanitizer available in classrooms and offices for use; ensuring obligatory use of face masks in school and the compliance with the "5K" regulations; body temperature checks, QR code scanning and medical declaration for all staff and teachers.

 

The college in cooperation with Nha Trang City Medical Center has conducted rapid diagnostic testing for all staff and 10% students regularly and at random, kept informed of any cases of Covid-19, including patients and F1 individuals who are school staff and students, for prompt pandemic response and control. Particularly, to effectively ensure Covid-19 safety, the college has issued a set of 17 Covid-19 safety assessment criteria in 3 phases: before going to school (7 criteria), during school days (6 criteria) and after school (4 criteria). Covid-19 safety assessment at the college is based on the criteria.

 

Many practical activities

 

Besides focus on epidemic prevention and control at school, Nha Trang Tourism College has also organized many practical activities to help students and the community overcome difficulties caused by the pandemic. The college has launched the volunteer program "Joining effort for the community’s sake and against the Covid-19 pandemic" with such models as "Charity kitchen" providing 300 portions/ meal, "3 on-site" (meals, accommodation, teaching) for teachers and "4 on-site" (meals, accommodation, study and volunteering) for boarding students. The college has mobilized and donated 5,000 portions to frontline staff against the pandemic and people in the blockade areas in Nha Trang City; donated 350kg of rice and 500 face shields to residents in Ninh Hoa Town; organized charity kitchens for 50 disadvantaged students and union members stranded due to Covid-19 restrictions from July 23; given more than 100 gifts and necessities to students in need; donated 1,200 boxes of braised fish, 150 cardboard boxes of mineral water, 3,000 eggs, 200 boxes of noodles to field hospitals in Khanh Hoa Province and frontline forces in Ho Chi Minh City. 

 

M.A Nguyen Doan Thanh, Secretary of the Party Committee, Rector of the college said: "With the size of nearly 3,000 students and curricula  consisting 80% of practice classes, online teaching is not always feasible. Therefore, ensuring safety for the in-person teaching and learning is a top priority. Thanks to timely leadership with many approaches, the college has ensured teaching and learning schedule. The enrollment for the 2021-2022 school year has reached nearly 90%.

 

The Covid-19 pandemic has affected all socio-economic aspects, especially tourism and service. Therefore, Nha Trang Tourism College's effort and achievement in teaching amid the pandemic has contributed to providing high-quality human resources for the tourism industry when the economy recovers from the pandemic. With the achievements in Covid-19 prevention and control and several practical activities contributing to social security, Nha Trang Tourism College was awarded a certificate of merit by the Provincial People's Committee on the occasion of the recent preliminary summing up of epidemic prevention and control in the province.

 

N.Dinh

Translated by N.T