Emergency Update: Teachers May Be Worried About Your Child.....

Knudsen's News: Emergency Update

Teachers May Be Worried About Your Child Part I: Your Child has a Fever

by Zoo Knudsen

Recent studies have shown that a daycare teacher becomes worried about a child every 7 seconds in this country, but often this concern goes unreported until the parent arrives to pick the child up at the end of the day. In fact, nearly 70% of episodes of Concerned Daycare Teacher (CDT) exist for greater than 5 hours prior to parental notification. So why are so many daycare teachers concerned? One of the most common reasons cited in surveys regarding cases of CDT are fevers.

Fever

The established scientific consensus on fever, which is when a child's body temperature rises above 99 degrees or when the child feels kind of hot, is that it is very, very dangerous. It has been linked in studies to a variety of concerning conditions such as meanness, teething, and ear infections, as well as blindness, baby rage and brain damage, and it should prompt an immediate parental notification. Luckily, most daycares have emergency fever protocols in place.

"We take every case of CDT seriously, but the minute that one of our teachers detects a fever in a child, or feels that the child might be feverish, the wheels of our fever containment plan go into motion," Victoria Sanchez, School Director at Penrose Institution for Toddlers, explains. "We run so many fever drills that it really is like we are on autopilot when a real fever emergency occurs. Parents are usually aware of the fever and on their way to remove the infectious child within 5 minutes."

But what do daycares do when the parent is unable to rapidly retrieve the infected infant or toddler? Most facilities are prepared for this eventuality. "We have a number of options, depending on the age of the child," Sanchez reveals. "Older children can be placed into the sterile containment unit which we maintain in our basement, where they can color and read while waiting for their caregiver to arrive. Babies are submerged in disinfectant and then placed gently in a closet." Sanchez adds that parents are charged a dollar for every minute it takes for them to arrive.

Experts recomend keeping any child with fever at home in order to avoid spreading their disgusting disease to other children. They especially warn parents to avoid premedicating children with tylenol and ibuprofen in order to prevent fever and thus avoid the need to waste a day of paid time off. They add that it works, and quite well, however it isn't very nice.

Coming soon: Teachers May Be Worried About Your Child Part 2: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder