Preventing COVID-19 Transmission in Education Settings

Abstract

OBJECTIVES In fall 2020, community hubs opened in San Francisco, California, to support vulnerable groups of students in remote learning. Our objectives were to (1) describe adherence to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mitigation policies in these urban, low-income educational settings; (2) assess associations between policy adherence and in-hub COVID-19 transmission; and (3) identify barriers to and facilitators of adherence. METHODS We conducted a mixed-methods study from November 2020 to February 2021. We obtained COVID-19 case data from the San Francisco Department of Public Health, conducted field observations to observe adherence to COVID-19 mitigation policies, and surveyed hub leaders about barriers to and facilitators of adherence. We summarized quantitative data using descriptive statistics and qualitative data using thematic content analysis. RESULTS A total of 1738 children were enrolled in 85 hubs (39% Hispanic, 29% Black). We observed 54 hubs (n = 1175 observations of children and 295 observations of adults). There was high community-based COVID-19 incidence (2.9–41.2 cases per 100 000 residents per day), with 36 cases in hubs and only 1 case of hub-based transmission (adult to adult). Sixty-seven percent of children and 99% of adults were masked. Fifty-five percent of children and 48% of adults were distanced ≥6 ft. Facilitators of mitigation policies included the following: for masking, reminders, adequate supplies, and “unmasking zones”; for distancing, reminders and distanced seating. CONCLUSIONS We directly observed COVID-19 mitigation in educational settings, and we found variable adherence. However, with promotion of multiple policies, there was minimal COVID-19 transmission (despite high community incidence). We detail potential strategies for increasing adherence to COVID-19 mitigation.