Selecting Child Care Providers - CHAPTER THREE - QUICK REFERENCE KIT Part 2

Child Care Safety Checklist

Cribs

Make sure cribs meet current national safety standards and are in good condition. Look for a certification safety seal. Older cribs may not meet current standards. Crib slats should be no more than 2 3/8" apart, and mattresses should fit snugly.

This can prevent strangulation and suffocation associated with older cribs and mattresses that are too small.

Soft Bedding

Be sure that no pillows, soft bedding, or comforters are used when you put babies to sleep. Babies should be put to sleep on their backs in a crib with a firm, flat mattress.

This can help reduce Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and suffocation related to soft bedding.

Playground Surfacing

Look for safe surfacing on outdoor playgrounds - at least 12 inches of wood chips, mulch, sand or pea gravel, or mats made of safety-tested rubber or rubber-like materials. These materials help protect against injuries from falls, especially head injuries.

Playground Maintenance

Check playground surfacing and equipment regularly to make sure they are maintained in good condition. This can help prevent injuries, especially from falls.

Safety Gates

Be sure that safety gates are used to keep children away from potentially dangerous areas, especially stairs. Safety gates can protect against many hazards, especially falls.

Window Blinds and Curtain Cords

Be sure mini-blinds and Venetian blinds do not have looped cords. Check that vertical blinds, continuous looped blinds, and drapery cords have tension or tie-down devices to hold the cords tight.

These safety devices can prevent strangulation in the loops of window blind and curtain cords.

Safeguard your windows with window guards or window stops.

Install window guards to prevent children from falling out of windows. (For windows on the 6th floor and below, install window guards that adults and older children can open easily in case of fire.)

Install window stops so that windows open no more than 4 inches.

Never depend on screens to keep children from falling out of windows.

Whenever possible, open windows from the top -- not the bottom.

Keep furniture away from windows, to discourage children from climbing near windows.

Clothing Drawstrings

Be sure there are no drawstrings around the hood and neck of children's outerwear clothing. Other types of clothing fasteners, like snaps, zippers, or hook and loop fasteners (such as Velcro), should be used.

Drawstrings can catch on playground and other equipment and can strangle young children.

Recalled Products

Check that no recalled products are being used and that a current list of recalled children's products is readily visible.

Recalled products pose a threat of injury or death. Displaying a list of recalled products will remind caretakers and parents to remove or repair potentially dangerous children's toys and products.

Percentage of Child Care Centers with Safety Hazard

The chart refers to four types of licensed child care settings that were visited: Federal General Services Administration child care centers, non-profit centers, in-home settings, and for-profit centers.

Overall

GSA

Non-Profit

In-Home

For-Profit

Unsafe Cribs

8%

10%

15%

8%

0%

Soft Bedding Present

19%

42%

21%

8%

14%

Playground Safety: Unsafe Surfacing

24%

5%

18%

46%

17%

Playground Safety: Poor Maintenance

27%

11%

24%

33%

31%

Safety Gates Not Used

13%

6%

8%

21%

13%

Blind Cord Loops Present

26%

22%

31%

26%

20%

Drawstrings on Children’s Outerwear

38%

30%

45%

26%

47%

Recalled Products in Use

5%

4%

5%

6%

4%

Safety Tips For Sleeping Babies

If your baby is under 12 months old, you can help prevent SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome), suffocation, and strangulation by following these three tips:

Place your baby to sleep on his or her back.

Remove all soft bedding from the crib.

Put your baby to sleep in a safe crib.

Why follow these tips?

Babies who sleep on their backs have a much lower risk of dying from SIDS and suffocation. African American babies die from SIDS at more than twice the rate of other babies.

A baby can suffocate from soft bedding in a crib. Be sure to remove all pillows, quilts, comforters, and sheepskins from your crib.

A safe crib is the best place for your baby to sleep. Make sure your crib has:

no missing or broken hardware and slats no more than 2 3/8" apart

no corner posts over 1/16" high

no cut-out designs in the headboard or footboard

a firm, tight-fitting mattress

a safety certification seal (on new cribs)

Toy Safety Tips

Under 3 Years Old

Children under 3 tend to put everything in their mouths. Avoid buying toys intended for older children which may have small parts that pose a choking danger.

Never let children of any age play with un-inflated or broken balloons because of the choking danger.

Avoid marbles, balls, and games with balls, that have a diameter of 1.75 inches or less. These products also pose a choking hazard to young children.

Children at this age pull, prod and twist toys. Look for toys that are well-made with tightly secured eyes, noses and other parts.
Avoid toys that have sharp edges and points.

Ages 3 Through 5

Avoid toys that are constructed with thin, brittle plastic that might easily break into small pieces or leave jagged edges.

Look for household art materials, including crayons and paint sets, marked with the designation "ASTM D-4236." This means the product has been reviewed by a toxicologist and, if necessary, labeled with cautionary information.

Teach older children to keep their toys away from their younger brothers and sisters.

Ages 6 Through 12

For all children, adults should check toys periodically for breakage and potential hazards. Damaged or dangerous toys should be repaired or thrown away.

If buying a toy gun, be sure the barrel, or the entire gun, is brightly colored so that it's not mistaken for a real gun.

If you buy a bicycle for any age child, buy a helmet too, and make sure the child wears it.

Teach all children to put toys away when they're finished playing so they don't trip over them or fall on them.

Read The Label…

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission requires toy manufacturers to meet stringent safety standards and to label certain toys that could be a hazard for younger children.

Look for labels that give age recommendations and use that information as a guide.

Labels on toys that state "not recommended for children under three ... contains small parts," are labelled that way because they may pose a choking hazard to children under three.

Toys should be developmentally appropriate to suit the skills, abilities and interests of the child.

Shopping for toys during the holidays can be exciting and fun, but it can also be frustrating. There can be thousands of toys to choose from in one store, and it's important to choose the right toy for the right age child. Toys that are meant for older children can be dangerous for younger children.

Last year, an estimated 140,700 children were treated in U.S. hospital emergency rooms after toy-related incidents and 13 children died.

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