Really???

[MamaBear]

I just got a all from a daycare parent that their child was diagnosed today with Herpangina... I'm reading up on it online. Fever with painful sores in the mouth & throat and VERY contagious. Just what I needed. Of course he'll be out tomorrow. Her dr said he could return tomorrow! WTF? Noooo he isnt! So she thinks he'll be okay on Monday to return.


Has anyone experienced this and how long do you make them stay out?

[Kaddidle Care]

This is a recent thread which reflects other's experience with this virus. (I'm pretty sure it's just another name for Hand/Foot/Mouth or Coxsackie Virus.) Must be that time of year again.

https://www.daycare.com/forum/showthread.php?t=30563

[Mrs.Ky]

Thats another name for hand foot and mouth. I dont think I would allow the child back till he is fever free for 24 hours and able to eat again that way you know the sores are gone in his mouth because if the sores in the mouth are draining its contagious. When I had hand foot and mouth go threw my daycare it spread like wildfire threw my own kids, daycare kids, and my neighbors kids and daycare kids I had to close for a week to disinfect everything.

[nannyde]

I've only had that once in my day care. Here's my not so awesome Herpesangina story.

I had a baby start and was here one day. The next day the Mom called and said the child had a blistering rash all over it's mouth.

The Mom was upset that the child had to have caught something here in such a short time and asked me about each of the kids. First day ever of day care. Called me on a Saturday telling me how sick the kid was and how it was SO painful.

Very dramatic and upsetting because this was a new family that I had worked hard to interview and bring in.

Well the kid didn't come back for about ten days (which was already planned). I got the physical and immunization forms and see on a second physical that had a notation the child had a case of herpesangina diagnoses the day after the one day the kid was here.

The incubation period on that is at least two days. The kid broke out in them less than twelve hours after leaving my house. So no matter how you slice it... there was NO possible way the kid could have contracted it at my house.

The not so funny thing was that once the parent got the diagnosis they did NOT call me to tell me that THEIR child had exposed my group to this virus. They knew FULL well that this virus had a minimum of a two day incubation, is highly contagious, AND they knew that NONE of my dck's were ill.

It was one of those deals where the concern level for the child being sick is focused on what has happened TO them. When the reality hit that not only did the child not get it here but in fact.. the child had actually exposed the OTHER kids... AND THE ADULTS then not a word. No care about the other kids or us. No heads up to the other families that they have been exposed to something so painful and can have a long recovery. No "you need to get to bleaching". NOTHING

None of my kids got it before, during, or after so it worked out BUT it was a lesson for sure.

[Crystal]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001964/

[Unregistered]

I actually got it myself right when I started daycare. My infant son had it at the same time. My MD said it was contagious for a number of days BEFORE symptoms presented themselves so there was no reason to bother closing. I called all my parents, told them the scoop, offered to not charge if they didnt want to come. They all came, nobody else got it.

Minor hiccup in this world.

[MamaBear]

Ugh

I now have 2 kids out with the Herpangina... aka a type of HFMD. They were diagnosed 2 days apart. The one DCM made me SO mad last night. She calls me to tell me that yes he has Herpangina and has sores in his mouth & throat and that the dr said he can come to my daycare tomorrow (today) because everyone has already been exposed anyway!!!??? Really? Um NO!

So after reading about it online and figuring all this out, this is what I'm doing. I'm sending a notice to both parents with the children with the Herpangina and basically saying that since their children are said to be contagious for 7 days, I am no adding to my policy (effective now) that each child that is diagnosed with this virus will need to stay home for 7 days from the day they are diagnosed. So the boy who was diagnosed last night will not be allowed back till next week Thursday.

I was going to just close down the daycare all next week due to the outbreak, but if I do I wont get paid at all and that would really hurt financially. So this way, they cant bring their child due to being sick and still will have to pay the fee.

I was just SO peeved when she was laughing on the phone saying "oh yeah - he can come back tomorrow because everyones been exposed already -hahahaha". That pissed me off. Because she doesnt know that everyone has been exposed. My new 5 month old baby is kept separate from everyone else and one of the kids was on vacation until yesterday, so they MOST LIKELY not have been exposed. So why would I let him come and spread it to the ones who havent?!

ERRRR... Im also sending a notice to all other parents letting them know that they will have the same policy if their child has it as well and that this is for the protection of all of the children (including my own!!).

You know what also ticks me off --- how when this particular DCM found out the first child had Herpangina she was like "oh my gosh - shes not coming to daycare for awhile, right? I dont want my kids to catch it!" But now that its HER kid, shes like "oh he can come tomorrow". REALLY? Shes gonna crap her pants when she gets this notice today. OH WELL!

[MamaBear]

I know!

I've only had that once in my day care. Here's my not so awesome Herpesangina story.

I had a baby start and was here one day. The next day the Mom called and said the child had a blistering rash all over it's mouth.

The Mom was upset that the child had to have caught something here in such a short time and asked me about each of the kids. First day ever of day care. Called me on a Saturday telling me how sick the kid was and how it was SO painful.

Very dramatic and upsetting because this was a new family that I had worked hard to interview and bring in.

Well the kid didn't come back for about ten days (which was already planned). I got the physical and immunization forms and see on a second physical that had a notation the child had a case of herpesangina diagnoses the day after the one day the kid was here.

The incubation period on that is at least two days. The kid broke out in them less than twelve hours after leaving my house. So no matter how you slice it... there was NO possible way the kid could have contracted it at my house.

The not so funny thing was that once the parent got the diagnosis they did NOT call me to tell me that THEIR child had exposed my group to this virus. They knew FULL well that this virus had a minimum of a two day incubation, is highly contagious, AND they knew that NONE of my dck's were ill.

It was one of those deals where the concern level for the child being sick is focused on what has happened TO them. When the reality hit that not only did the child not get it here but in fact.. the child had actually exposed the OTHER kids... AND THE ADULTS then not a word. No care about the other kids or us. No heads up to the other families that they have been exposed to something so painful and can have a long recovery. No "you need to get to bleaching". NOTHING

None of my kids got it before, during, or after so it worked out BUT it was a lesson for sure.

I know! THEY DONT CARE ABOUT US! I hate realizing that, but they dont! They care about THEIR money, THIER jobs, THIER kid. Not a care at all about ALL the other children... ME or MY family. Its all about THEM. I think this 2nd child who was diagnosed yesterday was the one who started the whole thing, yet the mom is acting like the first one is the one... almost blameful of her. Yet HER kid had a horrible cold last week and probably started the whole thing. She may have even known and not told me. This is the SAME mom who last month tried to sugar coat her daughter having a MRSA type of infection on her daughter. She made no big deal about that one BUT if it was another child here she would have obsessed over it. Arghhhh

[MamaBear]

sorry...

I'm sorry - I'm having a bad week this week. Dont mean to sound so crazy!

[Kaddidle Care]

You're not sounding crazy, you're sounding truthful. A former friend sent her daughter into school with strep and when I questioned her why on earth she would do such a thing, her response was "well, that's where she got it!"

I was so shocked that anyone would do such a thing. But they do. Oh joy!

[MamaBear]

Thank you

Thank you Kaddidle Care I'm just soooo happy its Friday and I can get a break from all the daycare drama. I feel like jumping in my Jeep and heading to my home town for a trip.... and maybe not opening my doors for daycare on Monday! haha... Me and my wishful thinking! ::

[jojosmommy]

I would be mad if someone changed a policy after a diagnosis that then meant I couldnt send my kids to care for 7 days. If your policy didn't say that BEFORE the DX and outbreak I think its unfair to change it until after this is over.

Especially because you didn't change the policy when the FIRST un-related child came down with it. I think its totally unfair to do it now. The second mom is going to feel like you targeted her and her kid only.

I have had this in my daycare before and it was minor. No more than anything else kids come with and the parents never tell us about. I have one physician mom with 2 kids in my care, she even sent her kids after I notified them of the outbreak because like some other people have posted they are contagious DAYS BEFORE SYMPTOMS, so 7 days contagious means many of those days have already happened. I called my own family med dr when it happened here and they said don't bother closing b/c everyone was already exposed.

If you get this strict on this mom about it I think she WONT tell you anything the kids come down with in the future just to protect her work schedule/daycare schedule.

[MamaBear]

It was for all of them

I would be mad if someone changed a policy after a diagnosis that then meant I couldnt send my kids to care for 7 days. If your policy didn't say that BEFORE the DX and outbreak I think its unfair to change it until after this is over.

Especially because you didn't change the policy when the FIRST un-related child came down with it. I think its totally unfair to do it now. The second mom is going to feel like you targeted her and her kid only.

I have had this in my daycare before and it was minor. No more than anything else kids come with and the parents never tell us about. I have one physician mom with 2 kids in my care, she even sent her kids after I notified them of the outbreak because like some other people have posted they are contagious DAYS BEFORE SYMPTOMS, so 7 days contagious means many of those days have already happened. I called my own family med dr when it happened here and they said don't bother closing b/c everyone was already exposed.

If you get this strict on this mom about it I think she WONT tell you anything the kids come down with in the future just to protect her work schedule/daycare schedule.

Thanks for your input, but you dont know all the details.

I made the policy update after I found out about the 2 children - one day apart from eachother. It was for ALL parents - not just the one parent. All the parents know that if they're child comes down with it that it pertains to them as well. The reason I never had this in my policy before is because I've NEVER encountered this virus in my daycare before. Now I have so this is what happens. I havent allowed anyone to come here with the virus after it was diagnosed.

I dont care if the parent is a freakin doctor with 10 degrees. I make my policies and my rules. They dont like it then they can leave. I'd rather make rules to protect the children in my daycare from disease then letting all run around and share blister juice with eachother. You cant tell me that if a child has a puss filled blister on their face that you would gladly let them come to daycare and share toys with another infant - would you!? If yes - thats really stupid.

And if the mom ever does lie and not tell me about a sickness that a child has and brings them anyway - then I will know. You can only mask a fever for a few hours and you cant hide blisters and sores from me. And in MY policy - if I find that a parent is lying about a disease - then they could be terminated from my daycare.

I could care less if the mom is mad. Let her be mad. It is HER child - HER responsibility - not mine when they are sick and contagious. They are contagious still when they have blisters and sores... and he has them. I will not risk the safety of the tiny baby I have in my care or my OWN children to let someone bring their kids when contagious.

You must also believe the parents when they say "oh its allergies and not contagious"...

[jojosmommy]

I thought the point of the forum was to share ideas? Sounds like if the idea doesn't match your already formed opinion you don't want to hear it.

And, yes I too have policies, and I am VERY STRICT on my sick policy, however I am not the kind of person to change something already agreed upon right in the middle of something happening. Thats like letting someone order a meal listed on your menu at one price then billing them 2x as much and telling them "too bad- my business- my rules". Wouldn't last around here.

[Country Kids]

Legally you can't have children in childcare that have contagious conditions such as this. So even if the doctor says ok the state will say no (at least where I live). The provider is doing nothing wrong in this case-she is protecting all clients and herself. I personally wouldn't allow a child in care with this condition and as they came up with it out the door they would go until all blisters are dried up and gone. You definetly know they couldn't go to a center with this so why would they be able to go to an in home family childcare.