INFECTION CONTROL

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INFECTION CONTROL

• Chapter 3

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Spreading Disease

• Young children are very vulnerable to the spread
  of diseases because they havent built up
  immunities
• The potential spread of disease in child care
  goes up as the number of children and staff
  increases

3
Controlling the Spread of Disease

• Controlling the spread of disease is a major
  responsibility for any child care provider
• If we understand the 4 ways germs that cause
  illness are spread we can set up preventive
  measures (see p 87)
• Respiratory tract cough, sneeze, talk
• The most common
• Secretions go through air to toys, food,
  doorknobs, etc
• Prevention cough into elbow

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Controlling Spread of Disease, contd

• Fecal-oral from bowel movement to hands to mouth
• Prevention sanitary practices See p 102
• Direct Contact
• Secretions (urine, saliva, mucus) to toys, etc
• Parasites to clothing, bedding
• Prevention hygiene--keeping clean See p 102

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Controlling Spread of Diseasecontd

• Blood Contact biting, nose bleed, cuts
• Universal sanitary practices

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Exclusion to Control the Spread of Disease

• Excluding children from care is not very
  effective. Most diseases can be spread
  (transmitted) for up to several days before
  symptoms appear

7
Immunizations

• Immunizations (vaccinations) help prevent
  communicable diseases. EX mumps, chicken pox,
  measles, whopping cough
• US ranks 69th in the world in immunization rate
  for children
• Whopping cough, measles, etc are resurging at an
  alarming rate
• See p 89 for immunization schedule

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Immunizations in CA

• Child care professionals report immunization
  rates among their enrolled children every Fall
• During intake process we can educate parents
  about the importance of immunization in
  preventing disease

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Failure to Immunize

• Some parents do not immunize for medical or
  religious reasons. These parents must sign a
  waiver.These students are particularly
  vulnerable. Ex if someone in the community visits
  an area with a high incidence of communicable
  disease
• Controversy do preservatives cause Autism?

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Hygiene and Sanitation

• Cleanliness (hygiene) and sanitation are
  important in preventing the spread of disease in
  a child care environment
• Cleanliness everyday absence of dirt and germs
• Sanitation killing germs that spread disease

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Universal Sanitary Practices

• Help prevent the spread of disease (viruses,
  bacteria, parasites)
• USP are practiced in the following areas
• Hand washing
• Diapering
• Toilet and potty seat
• Disinfecting surfaces

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Hand Washing

• The single most important thing a care giver can
  do on site to prevent illness
• See table p 92
• Hand Washing and Diapering will be covered in
  student demonstrations

13
Toilet and Potty Seat

• Toilets must be sanitized daily more often if a
  child has diarrhea
• Both child and assisting care taker should wash
  hands
• Potty chairs are hard to clean and sanitize, and
  should be avoided, if possible. They must be
  cleaned after EACH use! See p 95

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Cleaning and Disinfecting Agents

• 1. Cleaning all purpose liquid cleaners
• 2. Sanitizing Soap, detergent, abrasive cleaners
  remove bacteria to decrease spread of disease
• 3. Disinfecting Bleach and water solution used
  to eliminate germs. Different strength solutions
  for General cleaning p 96), OR Contamination by
  BM, blood, vomit, urine (p 98). Bleach loses its
  potency rapidly so solution should be mixed DAILY

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Hygiene Practices

• Dress-up things must be laundered frequently with
  bleach solution
• Hats should be sprayed with disinfectant
• Bedding should in individualized, labeled and
  stored in a plastic bag

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Head Lice

• Once head lice enter your school they are
  easily spread
• hard to eliminate
• often return
• require exclusion (when nits or lice are present)
• See p 98-99

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Environmental Disease Control

• Water table Standing water breeds germs (and
  mosquitoes) See p 100
• Play Dough breeding ground for germs
• See p 101
• Air Warm, stagnant air breeds germs. The more
  people in the space for a longer time, the more
  germs will breed.

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Implications

• Care givers should educate AND model infectious
  disease control tactics for the children, other
  staff, and families EX hand washing techniques
  (agar experiment)
• Cultural Sensitivity especially around
  immunizations
• Supervision Additional task report required
  illnesses to CA Health Dept.