Florissant Childcare Health Guidelines

Kid With Cold Blowing NoseWe take Florissant Childcare very seriously at our Little Arrows Child-care Facility.  Our highest priority is your child’s health and safety.  In keeping with our priorities, here are some health guidelines about bringing children into our facility if you think they may be ill or “coming down with something”.

Fever

To bring your child into Little Arrows Child-Care Facility, he/she must be fever-free for 24-hours without the use of fever-suppressants (according to state licensing guidelines.)  Bringing a child into our facility while they have a fever is not fair to the other children or the teachers.  When your child has a fever, they are most likely to be contagious, probably doesn’t feel well and will be hard to keep comfortable.

Guidelines for EXCLUDING Ill or Infected Children:

  • FEVER: (defined by the child’s age)
    • Infants younger than four months: 100F axilliary
    • Four months-24 months: 101F axillary
    • 24 months or older: 102F axillary or oral
  • SIGNS OF POSSIBLE SEVERE ILLNESS: irritability, persistent crying, unusually tired, trouble breathing.
  • UNCONTROLLED DIARRHEA: if the child has “the squirts” or formless stool with lots of water that cannot be contained in a diaper.
  • VOMITING: if the child has two or more vomit incidents in the previous 24 hours.  The exception would be if the cause is determined to food related and not a communicable condition and the child is not in danger of dehydration.
  • SORES IN MOUTH:  Unless a child’s doctor has determined that the sores are not from a communicable illness, the child should be kept home, especially if they are continuously drooling.
  • RASH: with fever or behavior change (until a physician has determined the illness is not a communicable disease.)
  • PURULENT CONJUNCTIVITIS: pink or red conjunctiva with white or yellow eye discharge, often with matted eyelids after sleep, including a child with eye pain or redness of the eyelids or skin surrounding the eye.
  • INFESTATION: (e.g., scabies, head lice) (until 24 hours after treatment has begun.)
  • IMPETIGO: (until 24 hours after treatment has begun.)
  • STREPTOCOCCAL PHARYNGITIS:  commonly called “strep throat”; (until 24 hours after treatment has been initiated and until the child has been fever-free for 24 hours.)
  • PINWORM: (until 24 hours after treatment has begun.)
  • RINGWORM:  skin infection (until 24 hours after treatment has begun.)
  • CHICKEN POX: (until six days after onset of rash, or until all lesions have dried and crusted.)
  • RUBELLA: (until seven days after the rash appears.)

We want to provide first-rate service to our child-care families, but also want to protect our children from illnesses and keep them from spreading within our facility and to the children’s families.  Please be considerate and keep your child home with you when you know they are ill, have a cold, or are being treated for a communicable illness.  Your doctor will let you know when it is safe for your child to return to school and day care.  Generally, you should wait at least 24 hours after they have been treated before you bring your child around other people.