When to keep your child home from child care

Working parents already have extra challenges that they have to face before they can get to their jobs each day. But when their little one is sick, all of them seem to pile up at once as they struggle to make important decisions about what is best for their child’s health, such as whether or not to keep them home from daycare. So to help make difficult situations like this a little easier, it helps to read the following information about how to decide when it is safe to bring a little one who isn’t feeling well to daycare.

Check the Daycare Sick Policy\

One of the first things that parents should do whenever they have a sick child is to read over the section of their daycare’s sick policy on when a sick child can be brought in. The reason for this is that if the daycare personnel see that a parent disregarded the rules by bringing in a sick child that ended up getting other children sick, they may not be allowed to have their kids attend the facility anymore. On top of this, most daycares will usually call parents to tell them to pick up their sick child right away. And not all employers are understanding about their employees having to leave work. If a daycare hasn’t issued a written policy to a parent, they can always just give them a quick call to seek their advice on the situation.

Review Your Child’s Symptoms

The following are some specific symptoms to look for when deciding whether or not a child is healthy enough to attend daycare:

Fever

When a child has a high temperature, it is always indicative of an underlying illness or infection since it is part of the body’s natural immune-system reaction. High temperatures are especially dangerous for infants, so it is crucial that they are brought to the doctor for a check-up right away whenever they have one. Low-grade temperatures that can be reduced with over-the-counter medications are usually caused by a common illness that doesn’t rule them out of daycare though, such as runny noses from a cold or an ear infection.

Rashes

Not all small children have had all of their immunizations yet, which can put them at risk for catching serious infectious diseases. Because of this, it is crucial that parents always keep their children home any time that they have a rash until they can have a doctor determine what has caused it.

Severe Itching

Besides causing children miserable symptoms, many parasites can be transferred to other children whenever they play together or share food or drinks. Hookworms and tapeworms are two of the most common internal parasites that kids often get. But they are just as susceptible to them on their hair and skin too, which parents often discover after they see that their child has severe itching. Two great examples of this are lice and pinworms.

Vomiting and Diarrhea

Vomiting and diarrhea are usually caused by a bad case of food poisoning or the flu. While they normally stop after just a day or two, it is still important to keep a child home who has these symptoms because they could potentially infect other children or become severely dehydrated.

Bad Cough

Coughing can be a sign of bronchitis or pneumonia, especially if it is accompanied by high temperature or an excess amount of phlegm. Parents can usually tell if their child has one of these severe illnesses if their little one is coughing so much that it prevents them from sleeping or performing activities that they usually enjoy doing.

Consult a Pediatrician

If a child has any symptoms that haven’t been mentioned above, then parents may have to call their pediatrician for advice on whether or not their little one can attend daycare. If the doctor says that there shouldn’t be any problem with them staying at the facility, then it is best to ask for the information in writing to give to the daycare. However, if the doctor says no, then parents should be prepared to keep their little one home until they can have time to recover.