Do you follow the 24 hour fever, diarrhea, throwing up etc policy when it comes to yourself or your own kids? I was closed yesterday do to my dd being up the previous night throwing up. She ran a fever which broke around noon. Parents asked me last night if I thought I would open. I said as long as I didn't get the flu myself I would be opening. Then I get a text from a parent this morning and saying she assuming I am closed and hopes dd is feeling better. (I was talking to her dh last night and told him I would be opening as long as I myself didn't get the flu) now it's got my thinking does she think I should have closed because dd needs an extra day home? As long as she has a good appetite this morning I have full intentions of sending her to school...

Reply

I keep parents updated when i myself am sick or one of my own children. They ALWAYS want to send their children regardless. I could tell them that we have a flesh eating disease and they would send lil suzie saying skin graphs aren't so bad. That's fine with me. I try to keep my own sick children quarantined to their rooms but parents are sending at their own risk. I do have an assistant that I can have come when my own children are sick so that I can give some mommy care and the assistant can take care of the dcks. It does cost me so I wish parents kept home but I do run a business and don't think it is wise to close so much. If you chose to follow the 24 hour rule for your family you will be closed often.

Reply

I don't close when my own children are sick as they are older and stay confined to their rooms.

I do let parents know and they ALWAYS send their children.

I do let parents know that I may still need to close, if for instance I have the stomach flu in the household or if one of them needs my undivided attention (I have one dd with asthma that can get out of control quickly with a cold).

I used to close when my kids were a part of daycare. As my kids got older, I reevaluated and decided to stay open. Parents are all ok with that.

Maybe mom and dad didn't communicate? Or maybe mom thought you would have contacted them to confirm? I would just send another email or give them a call.

Reply

All kids are here! Hoping this nasty bug is done it's been through all of my dcks except one school ager.

Reply

If my child is sick they are old enough to stay in a separate area away from daycare. I would not have been able to send her to school though...my school has a 24 hour policy so sending her to school would be as bad as when we complain about parents doing that to us.

Reply

My policy was a full day without fever/vomiting ect.I would keep my daughter home to.I also opened and had my children seperated from dc kids if needed.

Reply

I close if its really bad, but otherwise just let parents know if mine are sick. But if I was sending a child to school or daycare, I would follow the 24 hour rule. If its important enough for me to enforce it, then I would follow it if I was sending a child somewhere.

Reply

Me, too. I stay open and just let them know if one of my kids is sick. I have never had a parent keep their child home when it was their choice. It's just like what Hope said - very funny, btw! When they were little, DH or Grandma would care for them here, but now they are older SA so they mostly just sleep if sick.

I think if we followed the 24-hour policy, or closed every time anyone in our families was sick, DCFs would need about 30 more PTO days!

Reply

I don't close for my own kids because they're old enough to stay in their rooms alone when they're sick. I rarely get puking sick, but when I do I'm down for the count and have to close. I don't do 24 hrs for me because I figure as an adult I can avoid breathing on the kids and can wash my hands thoroughly.

Reply

From a parent's perspective: Staying home with my own kid when he's sick falls under our sick leave policy. Technically, unless there is a history of abusing sick leave, sick leave can't be denied. Childcare falling through because my provider's kid is sick falls under vacation time and can be denied based on workload and the whims of management. In some cases that leaves the option of lying to my boss by saying it's my kid who's sick or risk my boss telling me I have to come in anyway.

So, I can see why parents would at least consider sending their kids in. I use a center (and my new boss isn't a jerk like the last one), so that's not an issue I deal with so I can't say how I would respond.

Reply

I exclude my own for 24 hours when they have excludable symptoms. Our house is large enough for them to eat, sleep, potty, and play in a completely separate area of the house. At the end of the day they have free-reign again and then I just sanitize common areas before daycare children come back again.

I absolutely follow the 24 hour rule with my dd's school. I think it would be wrong to expose the other kids to what my dd has and it would be unfair to her to have to go about the normal day activities when she is still not 100%. Plus, I like the extra time I get with her.

If I were to get sick, I close and follow the 24 hour rule. Luckily that has only happened once . My dh calls me Wolverine because a lot of illness goes through all the kids and him and I barely get a sniffle, if that. I told him that I have my immunity built up .

Reply