Epidemiologist: Extended School Break Will Be Effective Only if Children Do Not Gather

Epidemiologist and Crisis Headquarters member Branislav Tiodorovic (Beta/Serbian government/Slobodan Miljevic)

Branislav Tiodorovic, an epidemiologist and a member of the state Crisis Headquarters for combating the coronavirus, said on Nov. 5 that extending a fall school break to nine days could be effective, but that both children and parents must adhere to all the other measures, and added that children got infected the most in contacts outside of school.

"However, I must point out that those nine days will amount to nothing if the parents of those children, i.e. of all students of all ages, and the elementary and high school students themselves, do not realize that this is not the time to gather in some other places, at house parties or cafes," Tiodorovic told Prva TV.

He stressed the fact that such breaks, of 10 to 15 days, had produced results in past flu epidemics and that there had been instances of the number of infected among students dropping considerably.

"But in this case, since it is something we have not had before, this is the most difficult epidemic registered both in the world and in our country, I must say that the other accompanying measures must be much more adequate, i.e. much stricter than they are now, to have a real effect," Tiodorovic underscored.