Occupational Health Watch: March 2022

Indoor Air Quality and Masking

Two new online resources highlight how to help the school community reduce the risk of COVID-19. The first resource covers information about ways to improve indoor air quality in schools and the second discusses masking for children.

A new factsheet, Improving Indoor Air Quality in Schools, describes how having good ventilation and air filtration in schools can reduce COVID-19 and other diseases that spread through the air. The document includes information about mechanical ventilation (HVAC) systems, natural ventilation like opening doors and windows, and adding portable air cleaning devices (PACs) to classrooms. 

The second resource, a one-pager on Masking tips for children, outlines how good quality, well-fitting masks help protect children from COVID-19 at school. It includes tips like encouraging children to wear the best possible mask – one that fits and filters well. The resource describes masks that are the most effective, and those that are the least effective. Although California lifted the statewide requirement for masks in schools and childcare on March 11, CDPH still strongly recommends masking in these and other indoors settings as an important prevention measure. 

Resources

• Get the Most out of Masking – California Department of Public Health
• Creating Healthy Indoor Air Quality in Schools – U.S Environmental Protection Agency
• Ventilation and Filtration to Reduce Long-Range Airborne Transmission of COVID-19: Considerations for Schools (PDF) – California Department of Public Health
• Ventilation Resources for Schools – California Safe Schools for All