If someone attending our center has any of the following symptoms that are new or unusual for them, they must be evaluated by a physician before they can return to care:

• Fever of 100.4 or higher

• Cough

• Sore Throat

• Headache

• Congestion/Runny Nose

• Muscle Aches

• Loss of Taste/Smell

• Shortness of Breath

• Nausea/Vomiting

• Diarrhea

• Tiredness

• Poor Appetite

The health department recommends COVID testing for anyone exhibiting any of those symptoms.

They may return when either of the following has happened:

• a physician has provided a note with an alternative diagnosis OR a negative COVID test result AND they have been symptom free for 24 hours

• OR without evaluation by a physician, 10 days have passed since onset of symptoms AND they have been symptom free for 24 hours

This is a change from our previous illness policy. And you can see the health department’s full decision tree algorithm here and a great infographic here.

Here’s the video of the presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVkRkWrCqj0&feature=youtu.be

Here’s a link to the full presentation and to the questions asked during the presentation.

Fairfax County Health Department Update

October 13, 2020

The following slides and information were shared with child care providers today by the Fairfax County Health Department. In response to this, we have updated our illness policy, which you can find here.

Fairfax County shared the current status of cases within the county

Fairfax County saw a peak in the spring with a relative flattening of cases, even once the state began to reopen.

They attribute this to the compliance of county residents with mask wearing, social distancing, and other mitigation efforts.

Even while the percent positive rose in other parts of the state, Fairfax County has stayed relatively stable at around 5% with an average of 2000 tests being done per day.

the main update that applies to Common Ground were the changes to the return to school criteria

Due to these changes, we have updated the illness policy above.

They did acknowledge that during cold and flu season, this will present a challenge for schools and care providers, but stressed the importance of this policy in stopping the spread of COVID.

They spent some time talking about “new and unusual” symptoms as well. Someone with known seasonal allergies who begins to show congestion at the part of the season does not need an evaluation.

However, with this new criteria, any new symptoms of illness will need to be evaluated.

The role of the health department when there is a confirmed case of covid

The health department made it clear that they are our partners when there is a case at our center.

Remember, even when you are practicing layered mitigation strategies, such as hand washing, mask wearing, social distancing, and staying home, there is still a risk of catching COVID, just because it is in our community. It’s no one’s fault and we are all in this together.

They made a point of explaining the difference between:

• a CASE - someone who has a positive or presumed positive test result for COVID-19

• a CONTACT - someone who has spent 15 minutes within 6 feet of a COVID CASE

• a CONTACT of a CONTACT - someone who has spent 15 minutes within 6 feet of a contact of a COVID case.

With these distinctions, they instructed us that we CAN allow the siblings of a CONTACT to remain in the center as long as the contact has a negative COVID test result AND remains asymptomatic.

they also shared some great information about what we now know about COVID-19, particularly in Children

The information shared in the slides helped to instill confidence in our practices here at Common Ground.

They confirmed that the majority of the cases that they have seen in child care centers were introduced by adults. They stressed the importance of practicing social distancing between adult staff members.

Particularly during meal times, when masks are removed to eat.

until there is a vaccination, prevention is our best weapon against covid

As you can see, we have policies in place that follow the best practices suggested by the health department.

Going above and beyond that, we have our Community Pledge that we ask all members of our community to take.

With the weather getting colder and as we head into cold and flu season, we need to make sure that we stay vigilant and do not relax the practices that we have been good about throughout the summer months.

We will publish a link to the full health department presentation when it is available.