There are a variety of options when it comes to childcare – stay-at-home parent, babysitter, nanny, or daycare. Allowing anyone to watch your child comes with an immense amount of trust, especially if he/she is your first baby and an infant!
Many parents worry about daycare for several reasons, the main one being recurrent illnesses. Most children who go to daycare seem to have a continuous light cough or runny nose, and you may feel like you are having to pick them up from daycare every single month for a fever! On average, children in group settings are exposed to at least one new virus every 1-2 weeks. Each viral illness can last 14 days or longer, so if you feel like your daycare baby is always sick, that’s because they are! However, this could be a good thing because it means their immune systems are working and as they get older, they are less likely to be ill as often!
Here are some things to consider when choosing a potential daycare:
- Look EARLY. Many of the daycares in the area have a 9+ month waiting list for new infants. Be sure to get on the list early in your pregnancy!
- Ask around! Ask family, friends, neighbors, and others in the community if they have a daycare they would or would not recommend.
- Interview different centers. Take a tour of the facilities and meet with the director. This can be a good way to see the security of the daycare and assess their safety measures (open doors, cameras, etc.) Trust your gut! If something seems off, your instincts are probably right.
- Some questions to ask.
- What is the ratio of staff per child?
- Do you follow safe sleep protocols? (Especially important for infants!)
- What are the immunization policies? (Recommended to follow the CDC childhood immunization schedule.)
- How are sick children handled?
- What is the discipline policy?
- What does the daily schedule look like?
- How long have teachers been on staff?
- Some questions to ask.
Your pediatrician can be a wealth of knowledge when it comes to helping navigate childcare. We are always available to discuss safe sleep, daily schedules, and infant/child safety!
