I am kinda bummed that we are getting snow again. I know that there are people in my life who are glad for it, and should really expect it for living in the part of the country I do, but still. It's spring, Mother Nature. Some nice weather and less snow would be nice for me. :)
So, for me, one of my least favorite parts of my job is to have to make the phone call to parents that their child is sick and needs to be picked up as soon as possible. I have great parents, but I know first hand how stressful it can be to arrange for time off to care for a sick child. Unfortunately, I've also worked with more difficult parents who have a harder time understanding why we send children home when they are exhibiting specific symptoms. They've already exposed everyone, so what's the big deal?
Well, let me tell you, there are several reasons...
1. The state requires the separation. The MN Department of Health detailed the list of symptoms that require that a child is removed from the group. It is not your provider deciding that they do not want to deal with your child, they can get in some serious trouble for not following the rules.
2. All new families are given a copy of the health policy when they register their child with the center. The director goes over all the information, and they are asked to sign that they have read and understood that if their child has symptoms meeting the criteria listed in the health policy, they are required by the state to be removed from care until they are symptom free without medication for a minimum of 24 hours.
3. One of the symptoms/criteria for exclusion from the group is that the child requires more care than the program staff can provide (AAP- Healthy Child Care America). If I am having to change diarrhea diapers every 30 minutes- 1 hour, if I have a feverish child who is needing extra snuggles and love, if a child is throwing up and needing clean clothing and carpet clean-up, it is taking away from the time that I need to be available to the other children in my care. In a child care center, infants have one staff to up to four children, toddlers are 1:7, and preschool is 1:10. If the teacher is alone and trying to deal with this, that is leaving the other children with that much less supervision and interaction, as well as expecting the child who is not feeling well to share you when they need that extra to feel better. Even if you have enough children to have a second or even third teacher, it still leaves the room short handed and scrambling when one child needs more care due to illness.
4. Along with some symptoms requiring more work for the teachers, it can pose a sanitation risk- which increases the likelihood of another child becoming ill- for the other children in the room. If a child vomits, or has a diarrhea leak out, another child could put their hand or foot in the mess before the teacher has time to clean it up.
5. Exposing staff to illness for longer than the time increases the likelihood that staff will need time off to get better. One staff who is in a room with an ill child can carry the illness to all of the other rooms (staff and children), and become sick themselves. I once experienced a situation where an illness took out 3 staff and about 10 children for two days. It was extremely stressful on those of us left standing. Even with all the child absences, the loss of two staff/day for those two days was felt by all of us, and this goes back to the quality of care we are able to offer.
Sick children will get better faster if they are kept home, or with an adult who is able to focus solely on them. (Nurse Grandma is great!) They can be monitored more closely, they can get more rest without interruptions, their needs can be met more quickly. There is less risk of reinfection, as their environment can be kept freer of the germs that are bugging them than a child care setting can. We do the best we can with cleaning and sanitizing, but a smaller setting with fewer toys/equipment and fewer children to get spit/boogers/poo on things the easier it is to keep things clean.
Also, think of this.... When your child is not the sick one, you (rightfully) expect your provider to be able to offer the highest quality of care that they are able to. When they are having to take care of illness on top of the other children, that takes away from the quality that your child is able to receive.
Communication is so huge! Let your child's teacher know when they are not feeling well, especially if they are nearing any symptom that will get them sent home. Ask your provider to call you if they feel that your child is in an in-between-- not feeling great, but not at a point where they are required to be excluded. This lets you prepare for the potential of a sick child, and keeps that communication flowing. Follow up with your child's teacher the next day, even if you are keeping your child home. If they are diagnosed, there are illnesses that need to be posted. Even if it isn't anything more serious, your child's teacher cares how they are doing- even when they are not in our care.
Prevention is also huge. All child care settings have policies about preventing illness which include hand washing procedures and cleaning procedures for the toys and environments. Helping by keeping your sick child home for the required amount of time keeps the spread of illness as small as possible.
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