(Health and Safety)

Responsible to: Management

Applies to: All staff

Date Effective: 08/2023

Review Date: 08/2026
 

Our Approach

The purpose of this operational policy is to keep children and adults well by meeting  Licensing Criteria HS25, HS27 and HS12.
 

High Five does everything possible to keep children and adults in our centre free from communicable and infectious diseases. We have clear procedures for identifying, isolating and eliminating illness, and for recording all illnesses that occur at the centre. Our job is to maintain the wellbeing of our children by creating a safe and healthy environment and acting urgently and effectively to ensure health and well being of all children. 
 

Objectives

• This policy supports staff to document illnesses at the centre and those notified to them

• Keeping all children and staff healthy in our learning environment

• Communicating with parents effectively and in a timely manner about their child’s illness as well as patterns of illness when they occur at the centre (i.e. outbreak)

 

Procedures

• All illnesses are to be reported to the centre via email as soon as possible

• If a teacher feels the child needs to go to hospital/doctor, parents/guardians are informed immediately and asked to collect their child and get them checked by a doctor or health professional immediately

• In the event that a parent or guardian cannot be contacted, the person responsible (the manager, owner or an ECE or Primary qualified kaiako) will take the child to a doctor, primary care or emergency department at the local hospital

• The person responsible/ teacher who notifies the parent will record the illness in the illness register. 

• Sick children with communicable diseases are isolated and kept at a safe distance from other children, to stop the spread of infection. Isolated children will be in the office where they can rest in a designated area under supervision. Parents are asked to collect them without delay. 

• The illness register is updated on Playground by the Centre Manager/Administrator each day when a parent notifies the centre of an unwell child via email

• Any notifiable diseases are notified to the Ministry of Health when there is a pattern of symptoms over a short period of time

• Staff and parents are informed of health warnings and how to recognise signs of any illnesses for which we receive Ministry notifications

• Children with symptoms of cold, flu and or illness, including cough, runny nose and fever, will be required to stay home 

• A fever where a child will be sent home is at and above 38 degrees C. When a child has an elevated temperature (i.e. in the 37 degree C range, teachers will monitor and take temperature every 20 minutes)

• A runny nose that is streaming (with clear and/or green mucus) that is isolated, that cannot reasonably be linked to another cause such as a known episode of hayfever or playing outside, will be treated as a symptom of illness and the appropriate steps will be taken by teachers to isolate the child and have them collected from the centre

• A cough that is isolated that cannot reasonably be linked to another cause such as a known asthma cough or a lingering cough from a past cold, will be treated as a symptom of illness and the appropriate steps will be taken by teachers to isolate the child and have them collected from the centre

• In the case of fever, vomiting or diarrhea, the child can return to the centre 48 hours after the last episode occurred

• In case of children with HIV the Ministry of Education’s guidelines will be consulted to learn how to keep all children safe.

Staff illness:

• Staff with communicable illnesses must take sick leave

• Staff illnesses are recorded in the illness register
  
   

Relevant References

Licensing Criteria 2008, Health and Safety, Child Health and Well Being documentation required: 

• HS25, HS27: a record of all injuries and illness that occur at the service. Records include the child’s name, date, time and description of the incident, actions taken and by whom and evidence of parental knowledge of the incident. Copies of current first aid (or medical practising) certificates for adults counting towards the qualification requirement.

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008: HS12, PF27, PF28, HS30, HS13, HS14, HS15, HS16.
 

Review
Review every three years unless there is a significant change in the topic area.