Is it safe to send my child to child care during COVID-19 ?

This depends on where you live, your family needs and steps being taken by the child care facility to prevent the spread of COVID-19. It is the advice of the American Academy of Pediatrics that child care centers  work with local and state health departments to help keep children and staff as safe as possible.​

Talk to your pediatrician

Talk to your health care provider about any concerns you may have. He will advise you based on your child’s medical history, your family circumstances, if immunizations are up to date and by checking that growth and development of your child is on track.

Talk to your child care provider

You’ll want to talk to your health care provider about what steps they are taking to avoid the spread of COVID-19 at their facility.

• Cleaning and disinfecting  procedures : Find out if they are following the CDC recommendations  for keeping surfaces free of germs. This includes cleaning and removing disinfectants from toys before  infants and toddlers play with them.
• Screening : Before coming into the facility, will children and staff  be asked to take their  temperature  to make sure they do not have a fever (100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or higher) or other signs of illness? If the center does not take temperatures, will parents be asked to take their child’s temperature each day before drop-off?
• Testing and isolation : Are people going to be tested for COVID-19 when they fall sick ? If someone tests positive for COVID -19, how long will they stay home from child care. Is there an isolation room set aside in case a child starts feeling sick ? What policies are in place for child and staff returning  to the facility after they feel better.

Routines

You also have to make sure they  have plans in place to keep your child safe.

• How will social distancing be enforced ? If it’s going to be enforced, how are they going to enforce it ?
• Will people who come into contact with your child be screened or wear cloth face covering? Will your child mix up with other classes or stay in one class ?
• Will they keep children 6 feet apart during meals , naps and snacks?  Will children stay with the same small group all day and during meals and snacks?  Infants should still be held when being fed and staff should always avoid bottle propping. When children nap, their cots can be placed head to foot, and they should not wear masks.