Daycare Concern

Go here http://www.naeyc.org/ and look at the information they provide. You should be able to observe the center at any time. Evaluate whether or not they are following the policies for keeping the children healthy.

K.,
That is WAY to much illness for one day a week, or even for full time. I would have to wonder what the illness policy is at the daycare and their cleaning policies.

If i was you, I would look for a new daycare, your child should not be that sick!

S.

About me: 30, mom of 5 year old daughter and due in 4 weeks with #2. I work full time and have always had my little girl in daycare and never had that kind of trouble!

The Daycare should be cleaned EVERYDAY... Thats why they have disinfectent handy wipes. and all toys and play areas should be wiped down once if not twice a week with light bleach water. Also disinfecting hand wash all childeren though out the day, make it a game for the kids, what kid do you know don't like playing in the water. and for those who are to young disinfecting hand sanitizer works great, even for infants. I wipe my infants hands all the time while shopping, leaving daycare.

I'd say if you only need daycare on Fridays, see if you can find someone to come to your home until he is older. Maybe a college student.

I don't think it's anything unusual though. If he's around alot of kids he is going to get exposed to more germs, thats just how it is.

My kids didn't attend day care,but I can remember when my older ones first start pre-school and kinder ( at the same time) That first year they were always sick, and I mean always! Even know with my family of nine, someone is always sick it is a never ending circle, It sounds pretty normal to me, and if they were disinfecting then they are doing all they can, it really comes down to the parents of the other children not sending thier kids to school when the kids are sick. Your son is building up his immune system at the moment, things will get better in time.

K., find a in home daycare that only has 5 or 6 kids. There are too many kids and he is going to catch everything. If you can't find a in home try another day care facility. He should be in with just the babies and i can't believe they have that much illness.

I babysat for years and I would take the kids when they were sick and put them in a special place and I NEVER had any of the other kids get what that child had.

Good luck,

M. B.

Trying keeping him out next Friday and see if he makes it without being sick. If he does then you need to switch daycares!

Well, there are alot of concerns with daycares. But my kids only go twice a week and they get sick every once in a while but that is what comes with the area. They are building quite the immune system. In defense of daycares, is they can't close down, there would be plenty of parents that would not have other arrangements to send their kids to. The daycare can only take action when the infected child's parents call the daycare. I only say this because I love our daycare and yes at times illness is a inconvience but my kids are building quite an immune system. If you are really upset voice your concerns to the daycare they should be willing to give you a explanation.

I agree with finding a inhome daycare but at the same time.... think of all the schools right now. My kids elementary school sent home tons because of the nasty flu that was goin around. I say kinda get use to it cause it never stops. Good luck

Yes, it is normal for your child to get sick once they start daycare because they're exposed to some many new germs. However, it sounds like your experiences have been to the extreme. I would definitely be questioning how often the daycare is washing the childerns hands, cleaning/disinfecting the toys, etc. My oldest child has been in daycare since 6-months old and my youngest since 2-1/2 months old. We've had our fair share of colds but noting to the extreme that you've described. We go to a small home daycare though so that might make a difference. I would also expect the daycare to call and inform you when the "whole" class is sent home due to the flu. Good luck!

Unfortunaly, I think it is noraml for kids to get sick at daycare. Our son gets a nasty cough starting in October and it usually goes away around April. We call it the daycare crud. Even if parents follow all the sick rules, kids are still going to spread their illness. Most of them are contagious before they show symptoms, so I don't think there is any way to avoid it.

I agree that 1) he should not be that sick that often and 2) you should look into other care options.

It does not seem your center is sending contagious kids home when they should and are obviously not cleaning as well as they should! They definitely should have cleaned thoroughly once the kids went home.

I also agree that you should have been notified!

I suggest you look into a small in-home daycare or have someone come to your home. Although it is good for him to be exposed to some illness to build up an immunity- I really believe daycare centers are too much for small children (and not just because of the illness).

Hi K.- Well, it does seem a bit much but, where there are kids there will be illness. A child has to build up their ammunities to illness and some times that takes about a year. Your daycare should however, be sanitizing daily- including a mouthing bucket to drop all toys that do end up in the mouth into until the have time to clean them. I would talk to the director and the lead teacher about their cleaning policies. and express your concerns about the recent illness outbreaks. At my center we post any illnesses that occurr in a classroom so the parents are aware.
Good luck, H.

It is perfectly normal that your son is getting sick at Day care. It sucks that he is getting really sick and is getting everyone else sick too. It makes me wonder about the Day Care though. I work in a Day Care and have never seen a child as sick as yours. We are to sanitize out toys nightly and wash our hands and the child's hands after sneezing, coughing, eating, blowing your nose, diaper change, restroom use. Every little thing you can think of. This may sounds really weird but look at your sons teachers hands. Do they look dry? Could they use some lotion? That could be a sign right there that germs are getting carried all over. What is the ratio in your sons classroom? Maybe the room size is too small for the children that are in it?? These are things to think about when you walk back into your sons classroom. Good luck.

K.-

Hey there! Hope you are feeling better now. Sorry to hear you were not feeling well for the holiday.

What I would do is find another day care for your son to be in. If everyone went home with the flu the day before, they should have sanatisied everything then, and not the day after it. The day after, They should not of even been open if all of the kids were sick. Since, they already knew your son doesn't come until Friday's, then they should have called you. I would suggest looking around and finding a better place for your son. Also, I would suggest getting the flu shot for everyone in the family.

This type of thing happend with our son. I think a lot has to do with it their immune system and their bodies not being able to defend off against these germs. When our almost six-week old son started daycare, he came home with a lot of sickness that first year. I can remember being sick the first year he was born on Valentine's Day! Which really did stink! Also, if the people working at the day care are not sanatizing what the children are using, then I am not surprised why the whole place is sick. The first day care my son went to was like this and they would even not notice he had a temperature when I brought him home. I guess the mom only knows. What I would do, is do more research about the day care and see if others have had similar problems.

If you are not comfortable with it, then I would start looking else where. We had a hard time finding a good daycare for our son too. It came down to the 4th day care that we really kept him in. I would show up to the daycare's and not make an appointment. That is a good way of seeing what really goes on in the daycare's and what the kids are really doing. Over the summer, I saw a lady with her daycare outside with the garage sale she was having. Not my way of taking care of the kids. OOOOOOh, but she did have the toys for the kids to play with on the drive way. Very stupid if you ask me!

Good luck with whatever you decide!

K.:

You have every right to be concerned. I do think this is more than usual-especially for an infant and the fact he attends less than most. I don't know how many children go to your particular daycare, but the less kids-the less likelihood of sickness. I have always had my children in an in-home daycare/now in-home preschool environment. My kids have actually not been sick once since they've attended the latest preschool since June-that is a miracle for us! She does a lot of hand washing and has sanitizer all over the place. If children have a fever of 101 degrees + or vomiting, they HAVE to stay home. Sniffles and a mild cough is one thing-your son has gone through way too much illness and it is a family affair as well at this point. I would start looking for someone new if it was me...
All The Best,
K.

Unfortunately, the first several months after starting daycare, a child will get more illnesses as he builds up immunities. I think this year has been worse than most with illnesses - at least it has been for my family, and I know that the daycare is sanitizing everything daily. Unfortunately, it is likely that the same situation could happen wherever you go. It's also likely that he was exposed to the illnesses prior to Saturday, so even if the daycare had warned you, he would've gotten sick anyway. It'll get better as he builds up his immunities. I would check to see that they're cleaning the room. The daycares that we've been to have a closing routine where everything gets wiped down and sanitized, and a sanitizing schedule for the toys that is increased during the times of illness.

This time of year is also bad because there's more exposure to people/illness while you're out shopping, visiting, doing holiday stuff. I'd definitely talk to the daycare about your concerns and see what their cleaning schedule is, but your little guy is building up immunities that will protect him from these bugs in the future.

While at the day care, see if they tell the kids to cover their cough with their hands....If they do...switch day care centers!!!! Yeah, cough in the hand and go about their day touching everything...sweet. In the "old" days handkerchifs were used. Day care centers are not to share infant toys either. They should have a cleaning bin and enough toys that whenever a child touches one or puts it in their mouth it is cleaned or put in a bin to clean later.
Also was he so sick to go to the ER? Flu like symptoms can be handled at home. Many parents panic a bit. I did for my first. By the 5th I was a pro.