Dataset from ReSET Aim 1b: Restarting Safe Education and Testing for Children With Medical Complexity - SARS-CoV-2 Testing in School With Children and Staff

Background: The purpose of this study was to increase safe return to school for children with medical complexity (CMC) and school personnel through three complementary approaches during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study aimed to determine the feasibility of in-home and school-based testing strategies for CMC, to gain understanding of parent perceptions about in-person school attendance, and to establish a consensus set of stakeholder priorities to facilitate safe school attendance for CMC.

Materials/Methods: Participants were recruited across three cohorts. Cohort 1 included caregivers and CMC enrolled in a complex care program who received in-home COVID-19 testing kits and completed quarterly surveys on perceptions of safe school attendance. Cohort 2 included students and staff from a preschool serving both typically developing and special needs children who were offered in-school and in-home testing and completed quarterly surveys. Cohort 3 included students attending a K-12 school exclusively serving children with special needs, and parents completed quarterly surveys and could also choose to share their child’s school-based COVID-19 testing results. Additional survey data were collected from parents of CMC receiving care at a large academic medical center to broaden understanding of parental perceptions of safe school attendance during the pandemic. Stakeholder input was obtained to establish consensus priorities to facilitate safe school attendance for CMC.

Outcome/Impact: This study assessed the feasibility of in-home and school-based testing strategies for children with medical complexity and identified factors influencing parental perceptions of safe school attendance. Findings were intended to inform strategies that supported safe return to school and guided stakeholder priorities for protecting medically complex children during the COVID-19 pandemic.