At the end of the day we have a choice about how we reopen our gyms.
We need to do it correctly. If we were to cause a localized outbreak, then that has huge ramifications for the sport and our community, and could have grave consequences to the health of those around us.
We need to set the standard and show that we can conduct martial arts classes safely and are deserving of the trust our students and community put in us. This will get us back to ‘normal’ faster than anything else.
Even if you don’t believe in the threat of coronavirus, there’s still very good reasons to follow the guidelines recommended by the gov and your peers.
First among them is the trust of your students and listening to their concerns. You want to remove personal opinion from all this and keep your students by keeping their trust that you care. Let them know you are doing all you can to address their concerns and keep them and their families healthy.
Is it safe to go back to training?
Considerations:
Infection levels in the community:
The best number is the Percent Positivity rate (PPR). What percent of those tested are coming up positive. Below is a link to this. This number is the major factor on what policies I have in place at the gym and how much risk can be taken.
At the moment the risk is extremely LOW. The PPR is zero or almost zero every day in Victoria. Anything under 1% is quite low. We are extremely low and deemed quite safe to train by health experts. (I consult with epidemiologists and first responders who train and teach BJJ)
Percent Positivity Rate:
https://covidlive.com.au/report/daily-positive-test-rate/vic
What safety measures is your gym taking?
• Is your gym using spacing/distancing?
• Are they limiting group sizes (small pod training)?
• Are they limiting the number of people you come in contact with during classes with contact?
• Is the gym well ventilated and/or Have extraction fans?
• Are the classes short in length?
• Is there a Covidsafe/hygiene policy in place like washing hands, temperature checks?
• Is your gym NOT allowing open mats or other untracked unmonitored training?
• At Summit Jiu-jitsu the answer is yes to all of the above.
Age/Health:
The first 2 previously mentioned considerations should determine the base risk you are taking. From that, your Age and Health such as pre-existing conditions known to create complications with covid19, should be considered. The more risk that exists at a base level, the greater risk there is to you if you fall into a vulnerable category.
Please talk to your coach/gym owner about your gyms policies, and your doctor/GP/specialist about your personal considerations.
Also take into consideration how much you are in contact with vulnerable people in your home, job, day to day life and how much extra careful you personally need to be in your risk management consideration.
Summit Jiu-jitsu Covid19 Policy and procedures.
*Limited class sizes requiring booking and contact tracing. (BOOK HERE)
*All equipment and surfaces cleaned between classes.
*Daily monitoring and consideration of Percent Positivity Rate
*Temperature checking of all staff and students.
*Classes are socially distanced on training dummies with no student contact.
*High ceilings, well ventilated, extraction fans.
*Short 1hr class sizes, low to medium intensity.
Is it safe to go back to training?
Considering the current PPR in Victoria, as long as your club is taking the right precautions as listed above, then it’s quite safe right now to go back to training. Obviously this depends on your personal circumstances and please talk to your doctor if you have any concerns. •
