Is Your Child Care Safe?

Every year thousands of children are wounded in child care settings.At times the injury is small and with a bit of first aid and a kiss the child is up and running again. Too often, however, the child requires treatment at a hospital. And at other times, the injury is critical.  As per Montessori course in Mumbai following safety measures should be taken into consideration to see whether your child care is safe or not.
Safety Check #1 – Licensing Requirements
If your child care setting is certified, the first step you can take to make sure that your surroundings are safe is to fulfill with all licensing necessities – the goal of licensing is the prevention of damage. Between yearly inspections, evaluate the checklist your licensor uses to assess your program to see for yourself if you are complying with all of the rules. If your location is not licensed, you can ask your licensing agency for copies of the rules and checklists and use them for cyclic safety checks. Your local resource and transfer agency can possibly help you contact a licensor in your vicinity.
Safety Check # 2 – CPSC Hazards
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) was established by the federal government to protect the welfare of consumers. CPSC tests products and recalls those set up to be unsafe, and responds to consumer complaints. CPSC also carries out study, including research focused on child care. For example, a CPSC study of licensed child care settings (1998) showed that two thirds exhibited at least one
embattled safety risk.
Safety Check # 3 – Playgrounds CPSC’s Public Playground Safety Handbook is a precious source of research findings and other information for child care providers about playground safety. The safety of outdoor play spaces is of key significance given the large number of injuries ensuing from falls and the fact that researchers have recognized “the school (including child care) as the primary location of playground injuries” and noted that playground falls are a “leading device of injury in daycare centers”.
Safety Check # 4 – National Standards Two important resources in early childhood education for learning more about preventing injuries to children in child care settings are Caring for Our Children and Stepping Stones. Caring for Our Children: National Health and Safety Performance Standards for Out-of-Home Child Care Programs provides complete national standards for protection in child care settings, written and reviewed by panels of experts in particular fields. Each standard is fully explained in an associated rationale and comments. Its friendly publication, Stepping Stones to Using Caring for Our Children, includes a shorter description of a sub-set of key standards and was designed for use in child care settings. 
Safety Check # 5 – 13 Key Indicators In deciding what to include in Stepping Stones, the editors consulted a number of specialists, as well as Richard Fiene (2002) whose research methods were used to help decide “the most critical standards for protecting children from injury.” After additional risk factor examination of the standards chosen for Stepping Stones, Fiene arrived at 13 indicators chosen on the basis of being able to “predict” overall observance with requirements and positive outcomes for children. Those 13 indicators, in arbitrary order, are child mistreatment reporting and clearances, proper immunizations, staff: child ratio and group size, director and teacher qualifications (two indicators), staff training, supervision/discipline, fire drills,administration of medication, crisis contact/plan, outdoor playground safety, aloofness of toxic substances, and hand washing/diapering.
Safety Check # 6 – Safety Organizations
You can also look to safety organizations for resources and supervision on injury avoidance. For example, SAFE KIDS USA is part of a worldwide organization that provides information and sponsors important research and education on child safety, including the National Standardized Child Passenger Safety Training Program. State SAFE KIDS coalitions have many local chapters that offer various activities and resources.
Safety Check # 7 – Your Own Experience Your own close comments of your child care settings, based on your personal understanding and records of injuries that have occurred in the past, are of key value in making your setting safe for kids. Whether your program is situated in a center, in a building like a church that you are adapting for child care, or in your home, you know better than anyone where injuries – and near injuries – most often take place. Use your knowledge of your setting to make your own checklist. Keep a record of incidents as they take place, and then review your records on a usual basis. Before long, you will begin to see patterns that will assist you take action.For example, if you notice that the children always seem to hurt themselves at one particular spot, such as where the ground slopes toward the corner of the building, you can decrease the risk by eliminating the slope or putting up a wall so that the children can no longer play there. Either way, by taking action, you will likely stop more than one injury and get rid of much pain and sorrow.