Tuesday, March 17, 2020

COVID-19 Updates 3/17/2020


Hi Everyone,

I listened to a great webinar today, hosted by Child Care Aware of America (CCAoA): https://info.childcareaware.org/coronavirus-updates
They offered some great tips and resources to help weather this COVID-19 pandemic:

According to the CDC:
Close contact is defined as—
a)      being within approximately 6 feet (2 meters) of a COVID-19 case for a prolonged period of time; close contact can occur while caring for, living with, visiting, or sharing a health care waiting area or room with a COVID-19 case
– or –
b)      having direct contact with infectious secretions of a COVID-19 case (e.g., being coughed on)

Remember the great hygiene guidelines provided in Caring for Our Children (4th ed.), specifically 3.2.2 Hand Hygiene and 3.3.0 Cleaning, Sanitizing, and Disinfecting. This is the link to the free downloadable pdf: http://nrckids.org/files/CFOC4%20pdf-%20FINAL.pdf

CCAoA suggested limiting food sharing and suspending family-style meals, instead having staff handle all food. They also suggested staggering drop-off and pick-up times to limit congregating of parents and children, and to cancel all unnecessary visitors (volunteers, entertainment) and non-essential personnel. If you have children who receive support services, make sure you are adhering to their IEPs.

Other resources include the World Health Organization (https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019), the United States CDC (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html), and the Maine CDC (https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/mecdc/infectious-disease/epi/airborne/coronavirus.shtml). Make sure you are consulting evidence-based resources and not giving in to rumors.

Remember, information for decision-making is changing rapidly as this pandemic evolves. Please check with child care licensing for any questions regarding need for closure and advise staff and families to consult their own primary health care providers if they are concerned about exposure; it is outside my scope of practice to advise on these issues.

Stay well!
Deb

No comments:

Post a Comment