Covid-19 Revised Sick Policy
Parents and staff must disclose if anyone in their household has any symptoms of COVID-19 including cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fever, chills, muscle pain, sore throat, and loss of taste or smell, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.
If a child or staff member exhibits any symptoms and/or has a fever of 100 degrees Fahrenheit, they cannot be admitted to the building. Children or staff not admitted to school should consult with a health care provider. The school may also need to consult with the Health Department and Licensing office.
If the school identifies symptoms of Covid-19 in a staff member or child at morning the symptom check, the staff member or child will be asked to remain at home until they are symptom-free for 2 days before returning to the school. If your child experiences a fever as part of his or her symptoms, your child must be fever-free without the use of a fever reducing medication. Giving your child Tylenol to reduce the fever before arriving to childcare or preschool in the morning is unacceptable because the fever will reappear once again and the child will still have to be sent home, and if your child 's fever is related to Covid-19, you will risk exposure for the other children and teachers in your child's class, possibly prompting the temporary closure and quarantine of one or more classes in the school.
If your child is identified with symptoms at the morning drop off or if your child is sent home during the day with symptoms, you will need to take your child to the doctor to determine whether their symptoms pose of risk of Covid-19 exposure and when it will be safe for your child to return to school. If a child or staff member was present at the school with symptoms developed after entry to the school in the morning, the school will immediately exclude the child or staff member. Children who develop symptoms during the day will wait outside with a staff member to maintain isolation until they can be picked up. Parents should have a plan in place to pick up students as soon as possible if necessary. Students or staff members leaving school with symptoms should consult with a doctor immediately and inform the school of the doctor’s recommendation. The school will contact the Health Department and the Licensing office for additional guidance if appropriate.
CONFIRMED CASE OF COVID-19
We ask that students and staff who pose a possible exposure risk request a rapid Covid test if Covid testing is recommended by your doctor. We will need to know the results of the Covid test to determine the risk of exposure in the school. If there is an exposure in the school building, the school will follow Health Department recommendations to close the class or classes affected and to undergo thorough cleaning and sanitizing. The class or classes involved in the exposure will likely be closed for 14 days and all persons identified as at risk for exposure will be asked to self-quarantine for the 14-day period. At the school we are taking precautions to keep each class separate as an individual cohort. Classes play in separate areas outside, use the bathrooms at separate times, and are grouped with the same other children for aftercare to limit the risk of exposure between classes.
If a child or staff member is confirmed to have Covid-19, the individual will need to follow guidelines for self-quarantine during the recovery period. The child or staff member can return to school when he or she has met the CDC criteria for discontinuation of home isolation:
COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS ABOUT HEALTH RISK
If there is a staff member or child sent home during the initial symptom screening, the school will not consider that the other children and staff in the school have been exposed and no further communication with families will be necessary. If a child or staff member becomes ill during the day or contacts the school to report a possible exposure to Covid-19, the child will be immediately excluded from care and the parents will consult with a doctor. If the case is determined to be a possible exposure, parents will be notified immediately following consultation with the Health Department. Parents notified during the day about a possible exposure must be prepared to arrange for immediate pick up their children from care and for self-quarantine at home for 14 days. Parents may not contact another child care facility to arrange for care during the self-quarantine period, as this will cause other potential exposures.
Additional reasons why the child cannot come to childcare or preschool:
These are just "examples" of contagious illnesses of when your child needs to stay out of childcare or preschool. Each individual case is different and may require more or less time out of school. If you feel that your child is sick with any contagious illness, please verify with a doctor that your child is clear to come to school before bringing him/her to the childcare or preschool. This is for the protection of your child, all other children present and the teachers and staff.
A doctor's note will show that your child is cleared by a doctor, but you must abide by the center’s sick policies first, regarding when a child can or cannot come to childcare or preschool. It is our hope to keep
the school as germ-free and sick-free as possible. Once ONE child comes to the childcare or preschool sick, he or she is exposing everyone to that illness. It can be a horrible sick cycle, and can cause unnecessary stress if we have to quarantine and close classrooms or the entire school building. So let’s keep it healthy--If parents do not abide by the center’s sick policies and the current CDC guidelines, then childcare will be terminated at the discretion of the administration.
If a child or staff member exhibits any symptoms and/or has a fever of 100 degrees Fahrenheit, they cannot be admitted to the building. Children or staff not admitted to school should consult with a health care provider. The school may also need to consult with the Health Department and Licensing office.
If the school identifies symptoms of Covid-19 in a staff member or child at morning the symptom check, the staff member or child will be asked to remain at home until they are symptom-free for 2 days before returning to the school. If your child experiences a fever as part of his or her symptoms, your child must be fever-free without the use of a fever reducing medication. Giving your child Tylenol to reduce the fever before arriving to childcare or preschool in the morning is unacceptable because the fever will reappear once again and the child will still have to be sent home, and if your child 's fever is related to Covid-19, you will risk exposure for the other children and teachers in your child's class, possibly prompting the temporary closure and quarantine of one or more classes in the school.
If your child is identified with symptoms at the morning drop off or if your child is sent home during the day with symptoms, you will need to take your child to the doctor to determine whether their symptoms pose of risk of Covid-19 exposure and when it will be safe for your child to return to school. If a child or staff member was present at the school with symptoms developed after entry to the school in the morning, the school will immediately exclude the child or staff member. Children who develop symptoms during the day will wait outside with a staff member to maintain isolation until they can be picked up. Parents should have a plan in place to pick up students as soon as possible if necessary. Students or staff members leaving school with symptoms should consult with a doctor immediately and inform the school of the doctor’s recommendation. The school will contact the Health Department and the Licensing office for additional guidance if appropriate.
CONFIRMED CASE OF COVID-19
We ask that students and staff who pose a possible exposure risk request a rapid Covid test if Covid testing is recommended by your doctor. We will need to know the results of the Covid test to determine the risk of exposure in the school. If there is an exposure in the school building, the school will follow Health Department recommendations to close the class or classes affected and to undergo thorough cleaning and sanitizing. The class or classes involved in the exposure will likely be closed for 14 days and all persons identified as at risk for exposure will be asked to self-quarantine for the 14-day period. At the school we are taking precautions to keep each class separate as an individual cohort. Classes play in separate areas outside, use the bathrooms at separate times, and are grouped with the same other children for aftercare to limit the risk of exposure between classes.
If a child or staff member is confirmed to have Covid-19, the individual will need to follow guidelines for self-quarantine during the recovery period. The child or staff member can return to school when he or she has met the CDC criteria for discontinuation of home isolation:
- At least 72 hours have passed since recovery defined as resolution of fever without the use of medicine and improvement in respiratory symptoms, AND
- At least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared.
COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS ABOUT HEALTH RISK
If there is a staff member or child sent home during the initial symptom screening, the school will not consider that the other children and staff in the school have been exposed and no further communication with families will be necessary. If a child or staff member becomes ill during the day or contacts the school to report a possible exposure to Covid-19, the child will be immediately excluded from care and the parents will consult with a doctor. If the case is determined to be a possible exposure, parents will be notified immediately following consultation with the Health Department. Parents notified during the day about a possible exposure must be prepared to arrange for immediate pick up their children from care and for self-quarantine at home for 14 days. Parents may not contact another child care facility to arrange for care during the self-quarantine period, as this will cause other potential exposures.
Additional reasons why the child cannot come to childcare or preschool:
- Fever of 100º or higher
- Cold with the thick green/yellow nasal discharge
- Constant runny nose
- Productive cough with green/yellow discharge
- Persistent phlegmy cough
- Croup
- Strep Throat
- Gastroenteritis (Stomach Flu)
- Persistent diarrhea (even if a reaction to antibiotics)
- Vomiting
- Ringworm
- Chicken Pox
- Hand Foot Mouth Disease
- Mumps
- Impetigo
- Pink Eye
- Head Lice, (children with head lice must be free of bugs and nits or eggs before returning to school)
- Scabies
- Fifth's Disease
These are just "examples" of contagious illnesses of when your child needs to stay out of childcare or preschool. Each individual case is different and may require more or less time out of school. If you feel that your child is sick with any contagious illness, please verify with a doctor that your child is clear to come to school before bringing him/her to the childcare or preschool. This is for the protection of your child, all other children present and the teachers and staff.
A doctor's note will show that your child is cleared by a doctor, but you must abide by the center’s sick policies first, regarding when a child can or cannot come to childcare or preschool. It is our hope to keep
the school as germ-free and sick-free as possible. Once ONE child comes to the childcare or preschool sick, he or she is exposing everyone to that illness. It can be a horrible sick cycle, and can cause unnecessary stress if we have to quarantine and close classrooms or the entire school building. So let’s keep it healthy--If parents do not abide by the center’s sick policies and the current CDC guidelines, then childcare will be terminated at the discretion of the administration.