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60 LITTLE LEGENDS CORONAVIRUS AND KIDS IN THE COLD SEASON ABy Nerine Zoio. n aggrieved child with a cold, clinging to a parent who is desperately seeking a solution, is a typical sight in pharmacies at this time of year. The scenario is generally preceded by parents watching their kids struggling with discomfort, which impacts their sleep, and everyone knows how pear-shaped it can go from there. But this year, with a pandemic raging, this situation has been exacerbated, with parents panicking that their children might be infected with the COVID-19 virus. Pharmacy assistants have a unique opportunity in these circumstances to help reassure parents that it’s generally accepted, amid constantly emerging study findings, that while children can be infected with the virus, they’re less likely to suffer severe symptoms. So, for the most part, it’s business as usual when it comes to treating colds in children. According to Dr Rebekah Moles, Associate Professor at the University of Sydney’s School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine and Health, pharmacies should keep abreast of ever-changing, relevant information on coronavirus pertaining to all age groups. Aside from this, it should be kept in mind that children often experience double the number of colds compared with adults, at five to 10 times a year, she says. The reason for this is that children haven’t yet built up their immune system, so don’t have the same immunity to colds that adults have. “When we were children, we also got the same amount of colds every year, but now we only get two or three a year,” Dr Moles said. “And children, just like adults, get over the common cold within seven to 10 days.” She cautions, though, that sometimes a “nasty” cough can remain and take a couple of weeks to shake off. Yet overall, Dr Moles points out, coughs and colds are “really not a bad thing” for children, as they help them build immunity. She advises that the best parents can do to help their children avoid coughs and colds, and even the flu, is to make sure they follow good hand hygiene, have a balanced diet and be vaccinated against the flu. “The importance of washing hands just can’t be reiterated enough,” she said. When pharmacy assistants encounter a child patient with a cough or cold, they often face a “paranoid” parent, too, Dr Moles says. RETAIL PHARMACY ASSISTANTS • MAY 2020