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Child Care Updates - August 2004

We hope all of you have been enjoying the summer season! This is the second Update for 2004 and begins the eleventh year of our efforts to keep the child care community informed about licensing programs and services. The Updates continue to be an important method for sharing information. We appreciate your support in sharing these Updates with those in your organization and others interested in child care issues.

In our last Update in May, we remodeled the Update by adding some color graphics and a topic index feature which will now follow the introduction. Those of you who receive these Updates via email can find the topic of your choice in each Update without having to scroll down. Just put your cursor over the blue highlighted subject heading that you wish to review, hold down the control button and click your mouse at the same time, and you will be taken to that area of the Update. We hope you will find this new feature useful.

TOPIC INDEX

• Drains in Pools and Spas
• The West Nile Virus in California
• Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS)

• Family Child Care Home (FCCH) Reporting Requirements
• Site Visits, Fees, Inactive Status, Posting Requirements, and Capacity Changes

LICENSING MANAGEMENT CHANGES

Dave Dodds, the Deputy Director of the Community Care Licensing Division (CCLD) for the last two years, retired from state service, effective July 1, 2004. Dave worked in a variety of positions in CCLD for over twenty years, and before becoming Deputy Director was Program Administrator for the Child Care Licensing Program. Dave was well-known in the child care community and was always a strong advocate for the health and safety of children in child care. Dave will be sincerely missed, and we wish him a happy, well-deserved retirement. While a permanent replacement is being sought, Martha Mills, a former long time CCLD employee and most recently Program Administrator for the Senior Care Program, will be Acting Deputy Director.

We are happy to announce a new Manager for the Fresno Child Care Regional Office. Brian Barnett comes to Fresno from our Senior Care Licensing Office in Orange, where he was a Local Unit Manager. We have been without a manager in Fresno for some time and are very pleased to welcome Brian to the position. Brian will begin his new assignment on September 1, 2004.

Myron Taylor, Manager of our Central Coast Child Care Regional Office in Santa Barbara, will be relocating and taking a position as Manager in the Senior Care Licensing Office in San Diego. We wish him well in San Diego and are recruiting now to fill his position.

KVIE PUBLIC TELEVISION PREMIERE

A Place of our Own/Los Ninos en su Casa premieres on many public television stations in September. Devoted to the unique needs of caregivers, this lively and entertaining daily program provides caregivers information and resources to support their role as educators, and demonstrates effective care-giving practices and strategies that will enhance preschool children's early learning and literacy skills. It also responds to the needs and workplace realities of caregivers. Many stations will reinforce and extend the program's content through professional development outreach services, family education, and online communications, collaborating with key partners in their communities.

In Sacramento, KVIE Public Television will run this program, beginning Sept. 13:
Weekdays 1:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. English on Channel 6, Spanish on Channel 7
Weekdays 5:30 a.m. - 6:00 a.m. Spanish on Channel 6
For more information on KVIE's extensive outreach and professional development activities, contact KVIE Education Services at (916) 641-349.

For information about when this program will air in your community, check local listings or contact your local public television station.

SUMMER PRECAUTIONS

In previous Updates we have stressed the importance of proper supervision while children are around bodies of water, and the dangers of leaving children unattended in hot cars. However, there are three other important health and safety issues that have been making the news this summer: The dangers associated with drains in pools and spas, the West Nile Virus, and Shaken Baby Syndrome.

Drains in Pools and Spas

Pools and spas are places we use for sports, recreation, exercise and therapy. They can be fun places for children, especially during the hot summer months, and should be as safe as possible. Unfortunately, each year people are injured or die at public and private pools and spas. In addition to typical drowning incidents, several other types of serious incidents around pools and spas have been prominent in the news lately. Young children, aged 2 - 6 years of age, have suffered serious injuries and even death from sitting on an open top skimmer or the uncovered drain of a wading pool where the floor drain cover is unfastened, broken or missing. The resulting suction is sufficient to cause serious internal injury or death extremely quickly. Older children, 8 to 16 years of age, have inserted a hand or foot into an open drain in either a pool or spa and become trapped by the resulting suction and drowned. Children with long hair have drowned when their hair has become entangled in the holes and protrusions in a suction outlet cover, most often in a spa, and they have been unable to extricate themselves. Although current codes and standards for pools and spas contain requirements to prevent these kinds of tragic accidents, injuries and deaths continue to occur.

The good news is that we can eliminate many of the hazards that commonly result in such injuries or deaths. Here are some general tips for parents and child care providers:

• Have a pool professional inspect the drain suction fittings and covers on your pool and spa to be sure that they are the proper size, properly attached, and meet current safety standards. A pool professional can be found in the yellow pages of your local telephone directory under "Swimming Pool Service & Repair".
• Keep children away from pool and spa suction intakes.
• Make sure that drain suction covers/grating are securely attached.
• Consider dual-drain (two drains) pools vs. pools with single drain coverings, or consider installing a safety vacuum release system that breaks the vacuum to avoid potential entrapment conditions.
• Ensure that children always keep their heads above water in spas to prevent hair entanglement.
• Keep pool pump speed below 6 feet per second.
• Install anti-vortex plats and drain covers to pool and spa suctions.
• Install remote shut-off switches for pool pumps.

Additional information regarding pool and spa safety is on the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission  website.

The West Nile Virus (WNV) in California

With summer here, the news media have highlighted the health threats posed by the WNV. WNV is a disease transmitted to humans by infected mosquitoes. To decrease exposure to mosquitoes and the infections they may carry:

• Avoid spending time outside when mosquitoes are most active, especially at dawn and dusk.
• When outdoors, wear long pants, long sleeve shirts and other protective clothing.
• Apply insect repellent containing DEET according to label instructions. For information regarding insect repellant and pesticide control visit the Department of Pesticide Regulation  website.
• Make sure that doors and windows have tight fitting screens. Repair or replace screens that have tears or holes.
• Eliminate all sources of standing water on your property that can support mosquito breeding.
• Make certain that pool and spa water is properly balanced and never operate without a sanitizer or allow the water to become stagnant.
• Contact your local mosquito and vector control agency if there is a significant mosquito problem where you live or work.

Additional guidelines and information regarding WNV in California can be found at the California Department of Health Services West Nile Virus Surveillance Information Center .

Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS)

SBS is the leading cause of death in child abuse cases in the United States. The syndrome results from injuries caused by someone vigorously shaking an infant, usually for 5 to 20 seconds, which causes brain damage. Although SBS is occasionally seen in children up to 4 years old, the vast majority of incidents occur in infants who are younger than 1 year old; the average age of victims is between 3 and 8 months. Approximately 60% of shaken babies are male, and children of families who live at or below the poverty level are at an increased risk for SBS (and any type of child abuse).

When someone forcefully shakes a baby, the child's head rotates about uncontrollably because infants' neck muscles are not well developed and provide little support for the head. The violent movement pitches the infant's brain back and forth within the skull, rupturing blood vessels and nerves throughout the brain and tearing the brain tissue, causing bruising and bleeding to the brain. Normal interaction with a child, like bouncing the baby on a knee, will not cause SBS, although it is important never to shake a baby under any circumstances because gentle shaking can rapidly escalate.

A recent newspaper article expressed concern regarding the surge in SBS during the summer months. Experts suggest the increase in summertime injuries and deaths is due to stress, which might be caused by a number of factors, such as the extreme heat, the presence of older children in the home, financial struggles, drug or alcohol abuse, or domestic violence. A similar spike in cases is typically seen during the holiday season.

There are still a significant number of parents and caretakers who do not know what SBS is or that shaking is so detrimental to children. For more information on SBS we recommend that you visit the National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome . There is a special section devoted to: "Expectations of Child Care Providers".

Child care providers are required by law to report known or suspected child abuse to a child protective agency immediately or as soon as practically possible by telephone, and to prepare and send a written report within 36 hours of receiving the information concerning the incident. A child protective agency includes:

• City Police Departments
• County Sheriff Departments
• County Probation Departments
• County Welfare Departments' Protective Service Agencies

The requirement to report suspected child abuse is a legal obligation. Failure to comply is a misdemeanor punishable by six months in jail and a $1,000 fine, and may give rise to personal liability.

Child care providers are required by law to also report such incidents to the child care regional office by the next working day, by telephone or FAX, followed by a written report within 7 days.

USE OF 15-PASSENGER VANS

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued an advisory to all states regarding safety issues surrounding the use of 15-passenger vans to transport children who attend Child Care programs. The NTSB has concluded these vans are not safe for use in transporting children as the vans are not built to school bus standards and, as such, pose a risk to children. AB 626, which was signed by Governor Davis, declares the 15-passenger vans unsafe and declares the intent of the Legislature that all school districts, private schools, community colleges and state universities should be prohibited from acquiring such vans to transport students. After January 1, 2005, those districts and agencies that already own such vans should limit their operation to persons holding a Class B driver's license with a passenger endorsement. Even though child care programs are not listed in this legislation, CCLD is providing this information to ensure that all child care providers are aware of the dangers associated with the use of 15-passenger vans.

CHILD CARE ADVOCATE WEB PAGE UPDATE

The Child Care Advocate Program web page has been revised and now provides up-to-date information regarding the Program, and a link to Self-Assessment Guides for both Family Child Care Homes and Child Care Centers. In addition, there is an additional web page devoted to Child Care Advocate Program Information Bulletins. We encourage you to visit these web pages often as they will provide you with information relative to child care licensing, news items, and a variety of resources designed to assist and educate child care providers.

REGULATION PACKAGES IN PROGRESS

Family Child Care Home (FCCH) Reporting Requirements

Assembly Bill 685 (Wayne), Statutes of 2001, requires all FCCH licensees to report unusual incidents or injuries that happen to children in care. Licensees must now report the incident or injury to the parent or authorized representative of the child in care and to the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) or the local licensing office. In July, 2003 a letter was sent to all FCCH Licensees describing the unusual incidents or injuries that must be reported to the CDSS along with a copy of the LIC 624B, Unusual Incident /Injury Report - FCCH.

Regulations are now under development which will provide further clarification regarding the incidents or injuries that must be reported as well as provide additional reporting requirements to enhance the health and safety of children in care. These regulations will also require that FCCH licensees provide the Consumer Awareness Information form (currently known as the PUB 72, Consumer Awareness Brochure) to parents when a child is admitted to the FCCH. It is anticipated that these regulations will be adopted later this year.

FCCH licensees are required to continue reporting incidents or injuries in accordance with instructions in the July, 2003 letter, until regulations are adopted. You may contact your local licensing office for a copy of the All Licensee Letter. You may obtain a copy of the LIC 624B and the PUB 72 by visiting the CCLD website at www.ccld.ca.gov , and clicking on "Licensing Forms".

Site Visits, Fees, Inactive Status, Posting Requirements, and Capacity Changes

A regulation package is being developed that will encompass the following legislation:

• AB 1358 (Pescetti), Statutes of 2002, allowed licensees to request to be placed on inactive status. In July, 2003, a letter was sent to all licensees providing instructions on how to request inactive status. Continue to follow these instructions until regulations are adopted.
• AB 529 (Mullen), Statutes of 2003, allowed one child enrolled in and attending kindergarten or elementary school and one child at least 6 years old to be counted as the 2 extra school age children for capacities of 8 or 14 in a FCCH. Implementation instructions were included in the Summary and Implementation Plans, 2003 Chaptered Legislation. Continue to follow these instructions until regulations are adopted.
• AB 1683 (Pavley), Statutes of 2003, required licensing representatives to post a Notice of Site Visit each time they visit a child care facility. This legislation also required licensees to post, for 30 days, all Site Visit Reports indicating Type A citations. Licensees are also required to post, for 30 days, documents indicating verification of plan of correction for Type A citations. Implementation instructions were included in the Summary and Implementation Plans, 2003 Chaptered Legislation. Continue to follow these instructions until regulations are adopted.
• AB 1752 (Committee on Budget), Statutes of 2003, replaced triennial visits to FCCH, and annual visits to Child Care Centers, with required annual visits and random sample visits. Implementation instructions were included in the Summary and Implementation Plans, 2003 Chaptered Legislation.
• SB 1104 (Committee on Budget), Statutes of 2004, increased child care licensing fees. (See attached Child Care Program Fee Chart)

GRANT FUNDS FOR DAY CARE CENTERS

The Department of Personnel Administration through the Work and Family Program, is offering grants for the start-up of new child care facilities, or the expansion of existing facilities for child care or adult day care. These grants are currently available to non-profit corporations whose intent is to provide care for dependents of State employees. This includes the development of adult day care for disabled dependents or elderly parents of state employees, as well as the more traditional day care for children. To learn more about the Work and Family Dependent Care Grant Program, please visit the website at www.dpa.ca.gov/workingfamilies , or contact Rosanne McHenry, Work and Family Program Coordinator, at (916) 327-0522 or rosannemchenry@dpa.ca.gov .

LICENSING FEE CHANGES

New licensing fees became effective when the budget was passed. Please see enclosed document, " Child Care Licensing Fees ".

LICENSED CHILD CARE STATISTICS

Enclosed are the most recent statistics on licensed child care facilities and capacities. Further breakouts by category and location are available. Please direct your requests to Jeffrey Hiratsuka, Chief, Central Operations Branch, at (916) 322-4875.

SUMMARY

If you have questions about items included in this Update, or suggestions for future topics, please contact Melissa Miller at (916) 229-4500. You may also visit our internet website at www.ccld.ca.gov  to obtain copies of licensing Updates, office locations, provider letters, regulations, forms, the Licensing Evaluator Manual, or to learn more about licensing programs and services.

Sincerely,

(original signed by M. Mills)
MARTHA MILLS
Interim Deputy Director
Community Care Licensing Division

Enclosures