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Is it safe to send my child to a child care center during Covid-19?
It depends on where you live, the health of your child and other family members, and the steps your child care center or provider takes to help prevent the spread of Covid-19.
The American Academy of Pediatrics advises child care centers to work with state and local health departments to help keep children and staff as safe as possible.
Talk to your pediatrician about child care options during the Covid-19 pandemic.
This can help you decide what is best for your situation, based on your child’s medical history and immunizations, and checking that their growth and development are on track.
In my practice, I like to talk to parents about infection rates and the development of a pandemic in our community.
Your pediatrician can also keep you up-to-date on state and local health department recommendations and offer guidance.
You’ll want to feel comfortable with how the care facility plans to clean and disinfect, screen children and staff for symptoms, and manage illness.
Research suggests that child care centers do not fuel the spread of Covid-19 in communities when they take proper safety measures.
Ask about:
> Cleaning and disinfection procedures.
Does the center follow the recommendations of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to keep surfaces germ-free?
This includes cleaning and removing disinfectant from toys before babies and young children play with them.
> Daily health exams and checkups
Before entering the center each day, will the temperature of children and staff be taken to ensure that they do not have a fever (38 ° C or higher) or other symptoms of illness?
> Testing and isolation
If someone tests positive for Covid-19, how long will they stay home?
If a child begins to feel ill during the day, is an isolation room available with proper supervision until the child can go home?
What is the policy for children and staff returning to the facility after they improve?
> Visitors
Do consultants such as speech or physical therapists use virtual options whenever possible?
If mothers are allowed to breastfeed their babies, are there separate, well-ventilated spaces available where staff can take the baby to the mother and then bring him back to the group?
You’ll also want to make sure the center has a plan for daily routines. This includes:
> Personal and group contact
Who will have contact with your child?
Will there be a limited number of children in each group?
> Protective equipment
Will staff be required to wear cloth face covers and encourage children two years and older to wear masks?
Do staff have access to multiple gowns, gloves, and other protective equipment?
> Time out
Do groups regularly spend time outside in nice weather to help reduce the spread of the virus?
Does everyone wash their hands before and after playing outside?
> Meals, snacks and naps
Will the center keep children physically apart during meals, snacks, and naps?
If children stay with the same small group all day, it may not be necessary to keep them six feet (1.8 m) apart when eating.
Babies still need to be held when feeding and staff should always avoid supporting the bottle.
When children nap, they can be positioned from head to toe and should not wear masks.
> Drop off and pick up
Are arrival times staggered to avoid contact between groups?
Are returns and collections made outdoors?
When it comes to the best child care options during the pandemic, there is no one right answer for every family.
Talk to your pediatrician and child care center or provider about concerns you may have. – Dr Datta Munshi / Tribune News Service
Dr. Datta Munshi is a community pediatrician in the United States and a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
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