Knowing when a child is too ill to be at Children's Discovery Academy, or needs to be removed, has always been a challenging part of our job. We all want to keep as much illness out of Children's Discovery as possible but also respect a parent's need to be at work. We met with a local pediatrician to set up specific guidelines we all can follow concerning illness. Some of these areas are discussed below:

Children Should Not Attend If They:

• Have a fever of 100° axillary or more within the last 24 hours without fever-reducing medicine.
• Have had diarrhea or vomiting within the last 24 hours.
• Have red or mattery eyes, and have not had eye drops for at least 24 hours.
• Have had any undiagnosed skin rash. We must have doctor's written slip stating the irritation is not contagious.
• Show signs of general flu or virus conditions.
• Have a condition that requires more attention than the teacher/child ratio: Infants 1:4; Toddlers 1:7; Preschool 1:10

Children Will Be Removed If They:

• Run a fever of 100° axillary or more.
• Have 3 loose stools or diarrhea.
• Have vomited or diarrhea which is uncontrolled (preschool only).
• Have any symptoms of pink eye (red mattery eyes) or impetigo (skin irritation).
• Have a slight fever combined with a change in behavior or mood and the appearance of illness.
• Are extremely upset and demonstrating a discomfort that the staff at Children's Discovery cannot seem to meet.
• If your child is showing any of the above symptoms, he/she must not return until the above conditions are no longer present, or a doctor signs a form stating your child is not contagious and is ready to return to group daycare. As our Public Health Nurse so wisely stated, "Child Care Workers are not trained to diagnose illness; they can recognize symptoms, and then the doctors should take it from there."

First Aid and CPR

Basic First Aid and CPR will be administered by a staff member as deemed necessary. All Assistant and Lead Teachers are trained in Multi-Media First Aid and CPR. In the event emergency care is required due to an accident or injury, the parents will be notified immediately. Local paramedic units will be called if necessary to take your child to Children's Hospital for treatment. Additionally, all infant staff have SIDS training.

Health Care Summary

Each child's Health Care Summary must be returned within 30 days of the child's first day of enrollment. All immunization records must be in by the time the child starts at Children's Discovery Academy. These medical forms should be updated each time your child moves into another classroom.

Medical Record and Health Care Summary

Illness Policy

Parents are required to inform Children's Discovery within 24 hours, exclusive of weekends and holidays, when a child is diagnosed by a child's source of medical or dental care of having a contagious reportable disease (such as whooping cough, measles, mumps, chicken pox, diphtheria, or scarlet fever). Children's Discovery will post a sign informing parents of contagious diseases as previously mentioned. If your child should show symptoms of illness while at Children's Discovery, he/she will be removed from the group and given a quiet space. The parents will be contacted and asked to take their child home as soon as possible. If parents cannot be reached, an emergency contact will be called to pick up your child. CHILDREN'S DISCOVERY IS A WELL CARE CENTER. Our curriculum and ratio are designed for children who are feeling full of energy and healthy. If all of us are conscientious about following these guidelines, we can cut down on much of the illness that enters Children's Discovery. In turn, your children will be healthier and allow you to work at your workplace. Thank you for your efforts.

Immunization Form

Medication Regulations

The State of Minnesota requires that all prescription medications, which are administered through Children's Discovery Academy, must have written instructions by a physician or dentist, and a written authorization to administer medication must be given by a parent. In order to satisfy the compliance, all medications must be kept in their original containers bearing the original label with legible information stating:

• Prescription Number
• Name of Drug
• Strength and Quantity of Drug
• Expiration Date of any Time-Dated Drug
• Directions for Use
• Child's Name
• Date of Original Issue
• Name and Address of Licensed Pharmacy Issuing Medication

We can only issue prescription drugs that meet the above requirements, and are required to be given during the time of day your child is in attendance. All written instructions must include a starting and ending date for Children's Discovery to administer the drug. With each new or repeated occurrence of an illness, a new prescription must be prescribed and a new Medical Permission Slip must be filled out. The staff at Children's Discovery will destroy all medicines that are past their expiration dates.

Prescription Medication

If your child is on a prescription medication, the medical permission slip does not have to be signed by the doctor (the prescription itself takes care of that item), but it must be filled out in entirety by the parents.

Over-the-Counter Medication

If it is an over-the-counter medication that your doctor has advised, the doctor must fill out the top portion of a Medical Permission form and sign the form. Please make sure the form is filled out in its entirety, or we cannot administer the medication to your child. The teacher will give you a 6-month standing order to be signed for Tylenol. It is designed to be used only in the case of an emergency. If this form is completed, we can give a child Tylenol if he/she develops a fever of 103° and rising and the parents are unable to be reached. The parents are still required to pick up the child from Children's Discovery as soon as they can be reached.

Tylenol 6-Month Standing Order

Product Permission

Parents should sign a Permission Slip for products such as wet wipes, over-the-counter diaper ointments, and sunscreen. This will allow us authorization to use these products until we are notified otherwise. A doctor's signature is not necessary for these products.