Dropping off your child at daycare while you head off to work can be a daunting and anxiety-provoking experience. Saying goodbye to your child at the door and not seeing them for the next 8 hours is not the most natural feeling in the world. However, your child going to daycare is not only essential so that you can go to work, but it is also an important aspect of their development and socialization.
While during your child’s stay you expect the highest level of safety to be provided by daycare professionals, kids can be kids, and sometimes children can get dirty or even hurt. So, if the worst happens and you return from a long day at work to find that your child has been injured, then you may not know what to do next. To give you a helping hand, we have put together a step-by-step guide of what to do if your child is injured at daycare.
Document Your Child’s Injury
Even though you may be shocked and upset to learn that your child has been injured at daycare, it is important that you document the injury and get all the information that you can about the incident. If you are informed by staff once you arrive to pick up your child, then you should be sure that you fully understand what happened and ask any questions you may have. You should also ask the daycare staff if they have made a note of the incident in their accident log book. This is important as your child may not be able to accurately communicate what happened.
Seek Medical Treatment if Necessary
As soon as you are made aware that your child has been injured in daycare, it is essential that you get them any necessary medical treatment. While the most common daycare injuries are usually not very serious, it is important that you don’t take any chances. Be sure to ask the staff at the daycare center if your child received any treatment or first aid after the injury took place.
It is crucial that you get any necessary treatment for your child as soon as possible, otherwise, this could have significant long-term consequences for your child’s health. You should do this even if you aren’t entirely sure at first what injuries your child has suffered.
Consult a Daycare Injury Attorney
It is important that you find out whether your child’s injury was an accident or whether it was due to the neglect or negligence of the daycare staff so that you can claim any compensation you are entitled to. While you may feel nervous at the thought of taking action against your child’s daycare center, getting in touch with an injury attorney who has experience in daycare injuries can make the experience a lot easier for you. They will be able to offer you the best advice and help you get to the bottom of how your child was injured.
While it can be all too easy to go into panic mode if you discover your child has been injured at daycare, following these steps will make the process much easier for both you and your child.