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Teachers' Strategies in Combating Diseases in Preschools' Environments
Emmanuel Obeng-Gyasi1, Melissa A Weinstein2, Jessica R Hauser3
1Department of Built Environment, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Greensboro, NC 27411, USA. eobenggyasi@ncat.edu.
Insights
Preschool teachers implement disease-combating strategies, excluding children with symptoms like fever or diarrhea. The study recommends addressing emotional distress in young children to improve overall health outcomes in early care settings.
Area of Science:
- Child Health
- Pediatrics
- Early Childhood Education
Background:
- Early childhood is critical for lifelong health and development.
- Systematic disease-prevention strategies are essential for young children in care.
- Optimal health in early care environments requires proactive health measures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine disease-combating strategies used by preschool teachers.
- To identify current practices in US Midwest preschools for managing childhood illnesses.
- To recommend improvements for child health management in early care settings.
Main Methods:
- Survey of 48 preschool teachers across 10 preschools in the US Midwest.
- Qualitative analysis of reported strategies for disease prevention and management.
- Focus on teacher-reported exclusion criteria and hygiene practices.
Main Results:
- Teachers require children to be symptom-free for one day before returning to childcare.
- Exclusion criteria include vomiting, fever, and diarrhea; children are sent home if ill.
- Head lice prevention involves prohibiting hat sharing among children.
Conclusions:
- Current strategies focus on physical illness symptoms and basic hygiene.
- There is a need for teachers to develop strategies for addressing emotional distress and illness.
- Integrating emotional health support is recommended for comprehensive child well-being in preschools.
Abstract:
Scholarship on child health indicates that the early years of life are vital for all aspects of health and development. In particular, a solid health foundation predicts good life outcomes; therefore, systematic strategies for combating diseases are needed to ensure optimal health of young children in early care environments. This study examined strategies used by 48 preschool teachers from 10 pre-schools in the US Midwest in order to combat diseases. The following results emerged: Participants noted that children should not attend childcare if they are vomiting, have a fever or have diarrhea. They should be symptom-free for at least one day before returning to school. It is recommended that children be sent home if they have any disease deemed to have adverse effects on their health during the school day. Participants noted further that children must not share hats in their childcare environments to avoid transfer of head lice. Since no strategies were mentioned to help children cope with emotional distress and illness, it is recommended that teachers develop strategies that will address emotional childhood diseases in order to help all children.