Is it time to switch daycares?

[Raewyn]

My DD is a 14 months old, and she started daycare when my 12 weeks of maternity leave were up last January. She was sick off and on, but nothing we didn't expect.

Starting this November, she was sick 6 times in two months.
1. Nasty cold(she gave to us!)
2. Pink eye. A few days after they posted that is was going around.
3. Pink eye a second time. Also from daycare.
4. Horrible stomach flu that was going around daycare. Bad enough we eventually had to take her to the hospital to get her rehydrated as she had been unable to keep down even water for 36 hours.
5. Pink eye a third time!
6. A really high fever - spiked at 104.4 and we ended up in Urgent care with her on New Year's Day. This had also been going around daycare

This is our first child, and none of our friends or family have kids in daycare. Just wondering if this is par for the course or if we should be looking elsewhere.

DD really likes her main caregiver, and is quite fond of the secondary lady as well. It is just really hard to have such a sick baby so often! And, of course, my and DHs work is just thrilled.

[LizLemon]

It seems to vary a lot. My friends and I had children in the same daycare class. Her child got sick all the time, mine almost never did. Your daughter is now at an age where she is interacting with other kids/people more and toys/objects more, so she is more apt to pick up germs. I would consider switching only if you think the center is somehow deficient, such as in enforcing that children not be sent to daycare sick.

[PZMommy]

Unfortuntely a lot of it is par for the course. My oldest DS did well with daycare and got very few illnesses. My youngest has some health issues and he catches everything! A lot of times kids are contagious before they show symptoms, so they spread germs without even knowing about it. I have found that as they get older and aren't chewing on as many toys, the illnesses tend to taper off. I think the first year or two of daycare is the worst, but then as they get older and start to build an immunity to things, they tend to not get sick as often.

I know it is hard when they are so sick. My youngest DS has health issues and what for most would be a minor cold, can land him in ICU for a week. Last year when I returned from my maternity leave, I still missed an additional 30 days due to his illnesses and that was with me and DH dividing up the time off. He was hospitalized four times, each time for a minimum of four days. This year has been a bit better. I have only missed 7 days so far, and two of them were for when I had a stomach bug. I really do think it gets better.

[Green_Tea]

Unless you feel as though the daycare itself is directly to blame (they don't send home sick kids, don't clean up, caregivers don't wash hands), I'm not sure switching will solve your problem. Crawling/newly walking babies that mouth toys get sick :(. FWIW, I think it's been a rough year for illnesses. My own kids have been sick a lot too!

[Raewyn]

The daycare has the standard sickness rules, and they do seem enforce them ( at least with DD! Oh how my heart sinks when I see the daycare on my caller ID!)

I suppose they are contagious before. And there is an awful lot of chewing and mouthing of toys . . .

[swrc00]

I do remember DS getting sick more, once he became mobile and walking. I think you also see an increase in the colder months.

[Clarity]

My only pause would be the recurring pink eye. I'd wonder if they were cleaning and disinfecting thoroughly in the room between bouts. If your dd has just started daycare then, yes, that's pretty typical and I wouldn't switch if you were satisfied with other aspects of the program.

[Raewyn]

Well, she got Pink Eye, and it was still going through Daycare when she got it again. Se came down with it 3 days or so after she went off the eye drops.

I guess it sounds like this is pretty normal. So hard on her and us, but normal.

[BabyBearsMom]

I don't think this is unusual, especially not the pink eye because if it isn't totally healed the first time it will come back. That is why you have to do the drops in both eyes for so long (our pedi usually has us do 10 days instead of the usual 7 because DD1 is prone to eye infections). Colds are par for the course especially if this is her first cold season at daycare. Stomach bugs and fevers happen. As long as they are sanitizing toys and practicing good hand washing at the daycare, I would not switch. FWIW, DD1 was sick for a lot if her first year of daycare but now she is a tank. In the past year, she has had one sick visit to the pedi. Daycare helps them develop great immunity.

[wellyes]

The first year is always hard, whether they go into a group setting a 1 year old or 4 years old. Hang in there, it gets better.

[mommylamb]

Unless you feel as though the daycare itself is directly to blame (they don't send home sick kids, don't clean up, caregivers don't wash hands), I'm not sure switching will solve your problem. Crawling/newly walking babies that mouth toys get sick :(. FWIW, I think it's been a rough year for illnesses. My own kids have been sick a lot too!

:yeahthat: unless you have reason to think that this particular daycare has a hygiene problem I wouldn't switch. I think that the variability has more to do wi the kid than the center to be honest. My DS1 rarely ever gets sick and he has been in daycare since he was six months old. His first daycare was a big center and one of the many reasons we left was my concern that hygiene went downhill when new management came in though DS1 still rarely got sick even then DS2 gets sick more frequently but still not as much as many other kids. I know some kids at daycares who get sick all the time and some kids whose oms stay home who get sick all the time too. So I think it has more to do with the kid than anything else. Of course if the daycare isn't cleaned well than that's a whole different problem.

[AnnieW625]

Well, she got Pink Eye, and it was still going through Daycare when she got it again. Se came down with it 3 days or so after she went off the eye drops.

I guess it sounds like this is pretty normal. So hard on her and us, but normal.

Did you finish the entire bottle of eye drops each time? I have had pink eye twice. The first time I only did the eye drops for the recommended amount of time, it came back within two or three days after finishing them. I don't recall how long I used them for again, but it was definitely 7 days plus. The second time I did the same I used the drops for more than a week too and it didn't come back again.

Good luck. Pink Eye is such a pain. My kids started daycare at 4 months old as well so I know how hard it is to keep them healthy.

[SnuggleBuggles]

How is the center's cleaning schedule? That's the only other thing I would consider. Otherwise, it sounds like a bad year but not worth changing.

[westwoodmom04]

My dd was sick literally every two weeks or so from November to March her first full winter (pretty much same age as your dd) and she wasn't even in daycare, although some of her playgroup friends were, so she might have gotten some exposure. At the time, Ped said babies are born with some of mom's antibodies in their system, but they wear off at around 8 months, so first "sick season" after that (Nov-May) is typically rough. Hang in there, it will get better. We haven't had a bad winter since.

[Raewyn]

Thanks for the feedback. Sometimes it just helps to know this is just "how it is". I think they are good about hand washing and such, many of the ladies even bring in their own hand soap and lotion because they wash so much. They also have disposable non-latex gloves they can use. They have always been good about it when I am there. And for the first 3 months DD was there, I came in on my lunch hour to nurse her. So I saw them during their non-peak time as well.

She has her own crib for nap time and they wash the sheets weekly or as needed (I am talking to you stomach flu!). This would be her first winter without my antibodies.

It is going to be a long one! I took more sick time this year than the other eight years combined at my employer. Hopefully they will continue to understand.

[marymoo86]

Thanks for the feedback. Sometimes it just helps to know this is just "how it is". I think they are good about hand washing and such, many of the ladies even bring in their own hand soap and lotion because they wash so much. They also have disposable non-latex gloves they can use. They have always been good about it when I am there. And for the first 3 months DD was there, I came in on my lunch hour to nurse her. So I saw them during their non-peak time as well.

She has her own crib for nap time and they wash the sheets weekly or as needed (I am talking to you stomach flu!). This would be her first winter without my antibodies.

It is going to be a long one! I took more sick time this year than the other eight years combined at my employer. Hopefully they will continue to understand.

My center washes daily and then the sheet comes home with us (we provide) to wash on Friday.

DD was sick but no where near your trauma. I would be concerned about the cleanliness aspect as I never encountered anything like this in my center.

Also you may want to investigate things to boost your child's immune system as it has taken a beating lately.

[AngB]

I have to second it being a really bad year. DS2 was born Oct.26th, since then DS1 has had at least 3 bad colds and a nasty 24 hour stomach bug...he's not even in daycare and has passed them onto our whole family and even my parents and siblings. (Prior to this fall/winter, in 18 months he had never been sick except one cold.)

Pink eye is so common at this age and comes on really really fast. When I worked in daycare there were a couple of times when a kid was there all morning and looked normal then woke up from nap with obvious pink eye- in that case it spreads around the room pretty fast since they all had been exposed before anyone knew they had it.

[Claki]

I'm just going to chime in for your piece of mind agrees with most of the PPs. I love our daycare and they are very strict about following protocols, but my boys are always sick. It's DS1's 4th winter and DS2's 2nd, but this cold season has been a doozy. The three of us have had this same yucky cold for three weeks, and they both had a different cold before that one. So far since November we've had croup twice, pink eye three times, three ear infections, and at least a dozen fevers as the result of colds. Kids just have more side effects from a bad cold than adults do.

Hang in there!

[wellyes]

Thanks for the feedback. Sometimes it just helps to know this is just "how it is". I think they are good about hand washing and such, many of the ladies even bring in their own hand soap and lotion because they wash so much. They also have disposable non-latex gloves they can use. They have always been good about it when I am there. And for the first 3 months DD was there, I came in on my lunch hour to nurse her. So I saw them during their non-peak time as well.

She has her own crib for nap time and they wash the sheets weekly or as needed (I am talking to you stomach flu!). This would be her first winter without my antibodies.

It is going to be a long one! I took more sick time this year than the other eight years combined at my employer. Hopefully they will continue to understand.
With these details, I'd definitely stick with the center you have. You sound confident in them. And it is a good sign that your child gets sent home frequently, some centers are more tolerance of sick children --- to the detriment of the ones that are well.