Sick child policy

Arrival of unwell child(ren) at the nursery:

The nursery management will not accept a child(ren) into care if

• Children who are unwell e.g., having a fever of 37.5 and higher, discharge form the eyes, excessive coughing & runny nose and who looks unwell during the arrival at the nursery will be denied entry and requested to remain home.
• Children who were previously sick must present a doctor’s note to authorize that the child is fit to return to the nursery and is not a risk to infect other children.
• Have had a temperature, vomiting and/or diarrhea in the last 24 hours
• Have a contagious illness or disease

Child(ren) who becomes ill during the day

Children may become unwell throughout the day, in which Management and Educators will respond to children’s individual symptoms of illness.

• A child who has passed two runny stools/vomited whilst at the nursery will be sent home and may only return after symptoms have ceased to reduce infection transmission as symptoms can develop again after 24hrs in many instances.
• Nursery staff will take the child(ren)’s temperature during the day, if the child’s temperature is 37.5°C or higher, the nurse will contact the child’s parents/guardian/emergency contacts as soon as possible to have the child picked up and provide verbal authorisation to administer paracetamol.
• If a child under the age of 2 develops fever with no COVID-19 symptoms and no history of contact with COVID-19 patients in the last 7 days, the nurse will look for any teething signs.
• Kids Spot Nursery must separate children of ill health, and who presents Covid-19 symptoms or any other communicable disease immediately, for these reasons the child will wait in the nursery clinic with a member of staff (wearing full PPE (Personal Protective Equipment)) while the nurse contacts the parents/guardians to collect the child the nursery.
• Parents are expected to collect ill children within the hour from receiving the phone call.
• Staff will ask the nurse for an assessment of the child(ren)’s health when a child(ren) develops signs and symptoms of illness that are not pre-existing or if the child is unable to participate in activities due to feeling unwell.
• In addition to our assessment parents can refer to their own medical practitioner for advice.

Return to Nursery

• Any child(ren) who has a sore throat, discharge from the eyes or nose, cough, sickness, diarrhea, fever, surgery, or any other contagious/infectious illness should be kept at home until a doctor has certified in writing, that she/he is fully recovered or 48hours (about 2 days) have elapsed since the last outbreak.

Family Responsibility

To prevent the spread of disease, families are required to monitor their child’s health, in particular:

• Runny, green nose
• Elevated temperature Diarrhea
• Red, swollen or discharging eyes
• Vomiting
• Rashes
• Irritability, unusually tired or lethargic

• It is important for parents to be vigilant about the health of their children/themselves and to create a habit of monitoring their temperatures & health while at home.
• If a child displays COVID-19 related symptoms e.g. sore throat, discharge from the eyes or nose, cough, sickness, diarrhea, body aches, shortness of breath, headache, fever, or any contagious/infectious illness the nursery should be informed immediately, and the child should stay at home until a doctor has certified, in writing that she/he is fully recovered and/or a negative PCR result is received if covid-19 was suspected.
• If parents suspect the child is unwell it is advised to stay home and seek medical attention. Under no circumstances should medicine be used to camouflage symptoms.
• In the event of a child being absent due to illness, the nurse should be notified of the doctor’s diagnoses, to ensure effective transparent communication with the wider KSN family and for us to treat the potential spread of viruses in our community effectively.
• Parents can notify the nursery about a child’s absence via the communications app.

Common Colds and Flu

The common cold (Viral upper respiratory tract infections) is common in children occurring 6- 10 times a year on average with the highest number usually being during the first 2 years in childcare.

Symptoms may include coughing, runny nose, and a slight temperature.

In circumstances where a child has a cold or flu symptoms, the nurse will determine if the child is well enough to continue his/her day or if the child requires parental care.

Our Service aims to support the family’s need for childcare; however, families should understand that a child who is unwell will need one-on-one attention which places additional pressure on staff ratios and the needs of other children.

Preventing Outbreaks

To prevent outbreaks, it is important to monitor the number of students/staffs who contracted certain infectious diseases and their characteristics. If a child in the nursery has contracted a contagious illness all nursery staff will observe and follow the infectious control policy to prevent the spread to other people.

The nursery is required to notify DHA (Dubai Health Authority) as soon as possible after they are made aware that a child enrolled at the nursery who is suffering from one of the following vaccine preventable diseases: • Diphtheria • Mumps • Poliomyelitis • Haemophilus influenzae Type b (Hib) • Meningococcal disease • Rubella (“German measles”) • Measles • Pertussis (“whooping cough”) • Tetanus • An outbreak of gastrointestinal or respiratory illness.

When an infectious disease has been diagnosed, the nursery will display appropriate documentation and alerts for families including information on the illness/disease, symptoms.