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Child welfare organizations keep infections at bay
Updated: January 26, 2022 09:07 China Daily

No child under the care of children's welfare organizations in China has contracted COVID-19 since the end of 2020, thanks to tailored pandemic containment measures implemented by the organizations, a Ministry of Civil Affairs official said on Jan 25.

The ministry issued two guidelines on pandemic control in children's welfare organizations at the end of 2020, including contingency response plans and pandemic control measures, which have played an important role in preventing the spread of the novel coronavirus, said Li Wanli, deputy director of its children's welfare department.

This month, the ministry released an amendment to one of the guidelines to better carry out pandemic containment measures in child welfare facilities. It includes establishing a reporting mechanism for provinces that have had confirmed cases in the previous 14 days and organizing random inspections of such facilities by the department.

With Spring Festival just around the corner, the ministry has also told local civil affairs departments to take on temporary guardianship roles for children whose parents are receiving treatment or are being quarantined for COVID-19.

The ministry recently issued a notice on assisting such children during Spring Festival. It said that if parents or caregivers cannot take care of their children because of pandemic prevention protocols, such as receiving treatment, quarantine or working in pandemic control, the civil affairs department should provide temporary guardianship, Li said.

The ministry has asked local authorities to gather information about such children, including orphans and those left behind by migrant worker parents.

The aim is to gain an understanding of their situation during the holiday-who their guardians are and their whereabouts-and send out contact cards with information on where to seek help and to establish a system of communication.

The notice requires civil affairs departments to strengthen cooperation with families, schools and social organizations and encourages social efforts, including from social workers and volunteers, to help such children.

Li also asked community service providers to examine children's living conditions, especially the safety of electricity and gas supplies. Any dangers discovered must be reported to the authorities.

Civil affairs departments in some provincial-level regions have already taken action. In Shaoyang in Central China's Hunan province, more than 13,000 children have received assistance.

Many regions have set up hotlines to help children experiencing difficulties amid the pandemic.

Yangcheng Evening News reported that a 12-year-old girl was left alone in hotel quarantine in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, in 2020 because her father was infected with the novel coronavirus and hospitalized. Her 4-year-old brother caught a fever and their mother accompanied him to hospital.

With the assistance of hotel staff members, the girl called the hotline and the district's minor protection center provided prompt assistance. It arranged for doctors from the local center for disease control and prevention and community hospitals to examine the child's health twice a day. Online communication was initiated with the girl to put her mind at ease.

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