Hygiene Policy - Annie Dennis



HYGIENE POLICY

Policy Statement

Annie Dennis Children’s Centre (ADCC) will aim to provide healthy and safe environments in which to play and work. All educators will be fully informed about their responsibilities to implement and adhere to ADCC’s health and hygiene policies and procedures to minimise the transmission of infectious diseases amongst children, staff, students, families and visitors to ADCC.

Rationale

All children have the right to develop to their full potential in environments which provide for their health, safety and wellbeing. Simple and effective hygiene strategies and practices assist to protect children from foreseeable risk of harm, injury and infection. Families should be able to see standards of hygiene used by educators that minimise the spread of infection.

Strategies

Educators can reduce the spread of infection by encouraging children to follow simple rules of hygiene. Children’s self help skills can also be promoted by supporting them to develop hygienic habits. The rules of hygiene will be included in the children’s educational programs and the educators will initiate discussions about these subjects during group times and individual children at appropriate times as well as in routines such as mealtimes, nappy changing and toileting.

Educators will support children’s hygiene by:

• role modelling hygienic practices such as thorough hand washing and drying; and

• using serving utensils to handle food.

By setting hygiene rules with children and providing positive feedback and support, educators can help children to develop personal hygiene skills.

Families can support hygiene at ADCC by:

• following simple hygiene procedures when they are at ADCC e.g. the sanitising lotion when entering and leaving ADCC;

• using good hygiene at home with their children;

• reminding their child about when they should wash their hands e.g. before eating, after toileting, after touching animals;

• providing their child with a supply of spare clothes from home; and

• keeping their child home when they are ill until they are well enough to return to care.

Practices and Procedures

Educators will ensure that every effort is made to maintain a high standard of hygiene at ADCC including supporting ADCC management in the maintenance of all equipment and furnishings in a safe, clean and hygienic condition and in good repair.

Educators use a range of hygiene methods that minimise cross infection that include practices and procedures that are carried out on a daily basis. Educators have access to laundry facilities that are adequate and appropriate for the needs of the centre.

Washing hands

Thorough hand washing and drying by adults and children is the single most effective method for reducing the risk of cross contamination. Hand washing notices which clearly explain effective hand washing procedures are displayed next to hand washing basins.

Educators will wash their hands:

• after going to the bathroom, changing nappies, after cleaning a nappy change area, after helping children use the toilet, after coming in from outside play, after handling garbage, wiping their nose or a child’s nose, after cleaning up urine, faeces, vomit or blood, after touching pets or animals, before and after handling food, before and after applying sunscreen, before giving medication, before starting work and before going home.

Educators will assist younger children, and remind and supervise older children to wash their hands:

• after going to the bathroom, after nappy changing, after coming in from outside play, after touching nose secretions, after touching pets or animals, before and after handing food, after coming in contact with blood, faeces or vomit an before joining the mixed age group.

Wearing gloves

Educators will wear disposable gloves when:

• changing nappies (refer to nappy changing procedure)

• cleaning up urine, faeces, vomit or blood

• handling soiled linen and clothing

• handling rubbish or nappy bins

• handling food if they are wearing nail polish or have false fingernails

• they have wounds on their hands or wounds covered with dressings.

Gloves will be disposed of after each use.

General Cleaning

Art and Craft - RED cloths

• use neutral detergent and water

Blood/Body Fluids - BLUE cloths and PAPERTOWELS

Hygiene practices that promote infection control are adopted for all contact with blood and body fluids. All staff will clean up all spills of blood, faeces, urine, vomit and other body fluids immediately by:

• wearing gloves

• placing a BLUE cloth over the spill, removing the BLUE cloth and contents, placing the BLUE cloth and gloves in a plastic bag, sealing the bag and putting it in the rubbish bin

• putting on new gloves, cleaning the surface with warm water and detergent using a fresh BLUE cloth and allowing the area to air dry or wipe over with a PAPER TOWEL, and

• removing and discarding gloves and washing hands thoroughly with soap and warm water.

All educational programs are supplied with a blood spills kit.

Food Preparation areas - GREEN cloths

Food preparation areas will be cleaned before and after food preparation as well as at the end of each day, as follows:

• sweep floor/ground before and after each meal/snack

• remove food waste, dirt or grease

• rinse off with water

• wash with warm soapy water

• rinse away the soapy water

• apply the spray sanitiser to the surface

• spread the sanitiser with a paper towel

• let it air dry.

Hand Basins and bathroom bench areas - YELLOW cloths

All hand basins and bathroom areas will be cleaned according to the following:

• use neutral detergent and water

• rinse away the detergent

• apply the spray sanitiser to the surface

• spread the sanitiser with a paper towel

• let it air dry.

Children’s toilets - PAPER TOWELS

Children’s toilets will be cleaned according to the following:

use neutral detergent and water

rinse away the detergent

apply the spray sanitiser to the surface

spread the sanitiser with a paper towel

let it air dry.

Floors - MOP and BUCKET

Floors will be cleaned by using neutral detergent and water and air drying before use by staff or children to prevent slips or falls

All staff will ensure floors are swept and washed regularly after each meal, or as required.

Nappy Change Mats - FABRIC CLOTHS and PAPERTOWELS

All nappy change mats will be cleared according the following:

use neutral detergent between each nappy change

wiped with a fabric cloth

place fabric cloth in a specially marked bucket and wash at the end of each day.

The change mats will be sanitised during the children’s rest time and at the end of the day.

Coloured Cleaning cloths will be washed regularly, air dried or disposed of.

ADCC will use detergent and warm water to clean except where the public health authority recommends a particular chemical for an outbreak of an infectious disease.

Each child will have their own bedding which will be washed at least once a week or after soiling.

Soiled Linen/Clothing

Soiled Laundry will be stored separately to other dirty linen, until such a time as it is laundered.

Items returned to a child’s home for laundering will have the soiling removed, and placed and secured in a plastic bag. Educators will not rinse soiled clothing due to risk of contaminating their clothing which can then be a source for transporting germs.

Cleaning procedure during an outbreak of a Communicable Disease

Communicable Diseases/Infectious Diseases are illnesses caused by microorganisms and transmitted from an infected person to another person. Most diseases are spread through contact or close proximity because the bacteria or viruses are airborne; i.e. they can be expelled from the nose and mouth of the infected person and inhaled by anyone in the vicinity.

Chlorine based sanitisers (household bleach) will be used in an outbreak situation.

All educators will follow these following safety procedures when handling bleach:

• add chlorine to water

• use only cold water

• wear gloves at all times

• use the bleach carefully as it is corrosive to metals, bleaches fabrics and may irritate the skin, nose and lungs

• follow safety and handling instructions on all bleach containers.

The clean up should be carried out in:

• all communal areas and rooms used by the children

• all toys and equipment that children use

• bathrooms and toilets

• kitchen.

Families will be asked to exclude ill children from the centre until 48 hrs after their symptoms have ceased.

The clean up will be repeated regularly until the outbreak has ceased.

ADCC Management will be responsible for notifying the local council and the Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Unit of the Department of Health. Update case lists with new cases and/or new information on existing cases will be faxed to the local council and Department of Health as required.

Cleanliness of Toys and Equipment

Educators will regularly clean the children’s equipment, toys and dress ups regularly in warm soapy water or put through the kitchen sanisiter. Toys, especially in the rooms of the younger children, are to be washed daily so as to avoid the spread of disease. Educators will wash a toy immediately if it has been sneezed on, mouthed and soiled or if it has been discarded after play by a child who has been unwell. ADCC will have washable toys for the younger children. The sharing of toys in the younger age group is discouraged in order to protect the babies against the spread of infection.

(Refer to the cleaning schedule for equipment and toys on display in the children’s rooms)

Bottles/Dummies/Teats

Bottles/dummies and teats will be cleaned with detergent and warm water and rinsed after each use. Dummies will be stores in individual plastic containers with the child’s name clearly displayed.

Drinking and eating utensils

Each child will be provided with their own drinking and eating utensils at each mealtime or snack. These utensils will be washed with detergent and warm soapy water after each use and at the end of each day the heat sanitiser will be used for all utensils, bowls, cups and chopping boards.

(Refer to the Food Safety Policy)

Food preparation experiences

Educators will ensure that children do not eat food that has dropped on the floor, has been handled by another child, except where the child has followed hygiene procedures and has been involved in the preparation of the food (mainly in the older age groups).

Animals and Pets

Any pets kept and ADCC will be kept in areas that are separate from areas used by the children. Its environment will be maintained in a clean and healthy condition. When the animals visit different rooms within ADCC, or are cared for by the children in their educational programs the staff will ensure the:

• animals have a portable cage/box to keep them in

• children are supervised by educators during contact with the animals

• children are educated from putting their faces close to animals

• children do not eat or drink while interacting with the animals

• children wash their hands after touching the animals.

Play Dough

Educators will reduce the risk of the spread of disease for children when playing with play dough by:

• encouraging hand washing before and after using play dough

• storing play dough in a sealed container

• making a new batch of play dough each week

• if there is an outbreak of vomiting and/or diarrhoea, educators will make a fresh batch of play dough and discard it at the end each day or refrain from making play dough until the outbreak has ceased.

Linen

Educators will transport used bed linen to the laundry in a laundry trolley. Soiled bed linen will be soaked to remove the bulk of the contamination, washed separately and dried in the sun or on a hot cycle in the clothes dryer.

Sandpits

Educators will ensure that:

• sandpits are closely covered when the centre is closed to prevent contamination from animal faeces or inappropriately discarded sharp or dangerous objects such as broken glass

• sand is raked over before use to screen for foreign objects and at intervals during the day and left exposed to the sun

• any contamination of the sand by animal or human faeces, blood or other body fluids is removed using a shovel and disposed of in a plastic bag

• centre management is informed if there has been extensive contamination of the sand and notify the council requesting it be replaced.

Links to other policies

• Occupational Health, Safety and Wellbeing

• Immunisation and Exclusion from childcare

• Supervision

• Anaphylaxis

• Building, Environment and Safety Checks

• Food Safety

• Hazardous Products

• Nappy and Toileting

Legislation

Education and Care Services National Law Act 2010 (Vic) –Section 3 (2)(a); 165; 167; 179; 189

Education and Care Services National Regulations 2011 and the National Quality Standard (Schedule 1 of the Regulations) regulation 77, 82; 85; 86; 88-96; 106; 109; 110; 112; 115

The Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004

Link to National Quality Standards

|The Hygiene policy is linked to the National Quality Standards, National Law and National Regulations |

|Quality Area 2: Children’s health and safety- This quality area of the National Quality Standard focuses on safeguarding and promoting |

|children’s health and safety. |

|Standard 2.1 Element 2.1.2, 2.1.3,2.1.4 |

|Standard 2.3 Element 2.3.1, 2.3.2, 2.3.3 |

|Quality Area 3: Physical Environment- This quality area of the National Quality Standards focuses on the physical environment and |

|ensuring that it is safe, suitable and provides a rich and diverse range of experiences that promote children’s learning and |

|development. |

|Standard 3.1 Element 3.1.1, 3.1.2 |

| |

| |

Sources

National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), Staying Healthy in Childcare 5th Edition 2013

Department of Health, Communicable Disease Prevention and Control Unit, Guidance for Institutions 2013

Education and Care Services National Regulations 2011

Children (Education and Care Services National Law Application) Act 2010

APPROVAL 15 July 2013

NEXT REVIEW DATE July 2015

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