Training for child day care staff and for licensing and regulatory personnel in the prevention of infectious disease transmission

Abstract

Recognition of the importance of preventing disease transmission in day care facilities has increased as more mothers of infants join the work force and as evidence of the spread of disease in day care mounts; the effectiveness of licensing agencies has eroded with the shrinking of resources, and limited compliance with current standards exists. Both the staff of child day care facilities and the personnel who are responsible for licensing and regulating such facilities require ongoing training in issues of health promotion and disease prevention. The curriculum of all training programs should include, in addition to child development, topics of general health and safety, such as safety hazards and the risk of infection, knowledge of the infectious diseases likely to be encountered in day care, the use of routine screening tests, the principles of good nutrition, the components of routine health assessment, and the special concerns of disabled, abused, and neglected children. Health professionals in the community and licensing personnel should function as channels for the dissemination of new information as it becomes available; inspection of facilities for the purpose of licensing provides an excellent opportunity for training staff. Monitoring has been found to heighten awareness and improve performance. Employees' compliance with regulations has been shown to increase when staff members are trained as advocates of health.