Unfortunately, daycare centers and home daycares are a breeding ground for severe back, neck, and shoulder injuries. This list highlights the most common contributing factors to back injuries and how they might correspond with typical childcare job duties.

Caregivers should be encouraged to only lift a child when absolutely necessary. Consider purchasing changing tables with built-in steps so children can climb up to the changing area. Also consider using smaller trash bags so employees do not have to lift heavy loads.

Bending and twisting while carrying heavy loads places remarkable levels of added pressure on the lower back muscles. Train employees to lift objects slowly and always keep loads as close to the body as possible. Fewer injuries occur when weight is distributed evenly throughout the entire body. Childcare employees need to be especially careful when picking up children. Kids are often much heavier than they appear and most people use improper technique to lift a child.

A strong core and healthy lifestyle have a major impact on an individual’s susceptibility to back injury. Statistics show that overweight individuals and smokers are far more likely to suffer a back injury on the job than their healthy counterparts. Encourage your staff to maintain a healthy lifestyle by eating right and exercising regularly.

Blood can carry a variety of pathogens. Bloodborne pathogens include human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), and hepatitis C virus (HCV). Transmission of these diseases in child care is rare. They are most frequently transmitted through needle sticks or when blood or other body fluid enters the body through eyes, nose, mouth, or broken skin. These diseases are not spread through saliva, sweat, or vomit. Casual contact like hugging, sharing a cup, using a public restroom, or coughing and sneezing do not spread bloodborne diseases.

However, to promote hygiene practices and decrease the chance of contracting various infectious diseases, you should wash your hands before and after helping a child or another adult who has been injured and after handling bodily fluids of any kind (i.e., mucus, blood, vomit, saliva, urine). You should wash hands immediately after contact with blood, body fluids, excretions, or wound dressings and bandages. It is important to wear gloves when you may come into contact with blood or body fluids that may contain blood.

The safest way to prevent exposure to bloodborne pathogens is to never ever come into contact with blood. Unfortunately, that isn’t always an option. At some point you may need to provide medical assistance to someone that is bleeding, or you may be asked to clean up blood spills. When these times come, your best bet for protecting yourself from bloodborne pathogens is using effective personal protective equipment – which is also regularly referred to as PPE.

You’ll come to find that there are many varieties of PPE, and each variety is often used to protect certain parts of your body. The three main categories of PPE are designed to protect your hands, your face or your body.

After successfully cleaning up a blood spill and decontaminating the area, there is still the important final step of safely disposing of all the cleanup materials. Depending on the different types of PPE you used the sequence of removing and disposing of PPE may vary, but the general procedure should remain the same.

Gloves: Remove the gloves first since they were most likely exposed to the largest amount of blood. Remove gloves by grasping near the wrist and pulling the glove off inside out. Next use the inside out glove to peel off the other glove. Once both gloves are off, place them in a marked and sealable hazardous material bag.

Gown: If you used a gown or apron for cleanup, consider the front and sleeves of it dirty and remove and handle from the back. First, remove any ties or straps and peel the gown away from your body. Next, turn the garment inside out, fold it into itself, and throw it away in the appropriate hazardous materials bag.

Eyewear: As with gowns and aprons, the front of the eyewear is considered dirty and should not be handled. Remove them by grasping the frames near the ear and gently pull away from the face. Depending on the type they should either be disposed of or placed in a special container for sanitizing.

Face Shield: Remove the mask by the ear loops since the front in considered dirty. Remove away from the face in a downward direction and dispose.

Another way to reduce the risk of transmission of microorganisms (germs) that can cause infection is to practice standard or universal precautions. Standard precautions cover all situations where you may come into contact with body fluids. Universal precautions apply specifically to contact with blood and do not apply to contact with feces, nasal secretions, sputum, sweat, tears, urine, saliva, or vomit unless these body fluids also contain blood. In childcare settings, standard precautions involve using barriers to prevent contact with body fluids from another person and cleaning and disinfecting contaminated surfaces.

Barriers you might use to help prevent bodily fluid contact might include:

• Disposable diaper table paper

• Disposable towels

• Gloves

• Plastic bags, securely sealed

Gloves, though recommended and required by many programs, do not automatically protect children and adults from exposure to germs. Adults often feel a false sense of protection when they wear gloves. Wearing gloves does not merely involve protecting your hands. Germs that touch a glove can be spread to the next surface the glove touches.

Stress is defined as a physical or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension. It is a normal part of human life—a little stress keeps us from being bored and checked out. But too much stress in a short amount of time or stress that is constant or chronic has a negative impact on our physical and mental health.

his video outlines the steps of diaphragmatic breathing, a relaxation technique you can use to increase your resilience and reduce anxiety. Diaphragmatic breathing is also described below in the "Do" section of this lesson. First, watch the video to understand the steps. Next, try closing your eyes while listening to and following along to the instructions provided. Similar to the breathing exercise you tried in Lesson One, as you try this exercise, take time to reflect on how diaphragmatic breathing helps calm your mind. Return to this video to continue practicing this stress-reduction strategy until you have mastered it. When your body feels stressed, diaphragmatic breathing can help to re-center yourself, and it facilitates emotion regulation.